Strength of Fist and Heart
by Darklion74
Summary: Misplaced anger forces Naruto as a toddler from town into the hands of... someone who has abandoned the leaf for a long time. The REAL Exam begins in Chapter 9!
1. Child with the Seal

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
_by Darklion74_**

A/N: Standard disclaimer, I do not own Naruto nor it's characters, only the plot of this alternate beginning. A few surprises are in store. I think you'll enjoy it.

**Chapter One  
Child with the Seal**

It was only two years since Kyuubi had attacked Konohagakure, and the town had just gotten back on it's feet. This beginning, however, isn't out in the cool nighttime air, as the Hidden Village of the Leaf is just starting to fall back asleep, except for the shinobi guards around town, but in a darkened room with only one candle providing light, and several figures clad in the ninja shozoko of the Leaf.

A female voice spoke out. "Nobody must know of this meeting, not even the Hokage. If he were to find out... well, I think everyone here knows. This is a special mission that we chuunin must carry out for the future of our village."

A younger male voice spoke out. "Anko-senpai, are you certain this is a good idea?"

Mitarashi Anko merely growled. "Listen, Iruka. I understand you just recently became a Chuunin but you need to understand that this is necessary."

Iruka merely grunted. "Hey, I have no problems killing the kid, but this child is someone whom the Hokage favors, and wants to see grow..."

A nondescript chunnin then responded from the shadows. "Which is why he has to be dealt with now! Are you in, or are you out?"

Iruka growled. "Listen, I'm not about to make an enemy of the Hokage. I'm out." With that he vanished from the room.

Anko shrugged. "Forget him, he's not important. So here's the plan... we need to get a few people to start..."

* * *

Sleeping within his little bed, Naruto quietly napped through the night. Only two years old, he seemed oblivious to the world, happily dreaming of fuzzy bunnies with shuriken and flying with pigs. Except for the huge mark on his stomach, the little blonde seemed to be a normal two year old kid.

A shattered window ended his dream as he looked around trying to see what made so much noise. An explosion, a few seconds later hurled him out of the window and into the arms of an angry villager.

"I have the demon in my hands! I have him! Let's burn it at the stake!"

The kid, not understanding what was going on, did the only things he knew how to do, he wet himself, struggled, and wailed like mad. Struggled as the kid might, he couldn't escape the grasp of this huge man who only had a face full of fury. He tried to bite the man, but the man merely kept himself moving so that the kid couldn't get a good target.

"Hurry up! Let's get him before he bites my... urk!"

The man holding Naruto was immediately silenced by a thrown kunai that got him in the throat, forcing the enraged villager to drop the toddler. The kid managed to land on his feet, painfully, but still land. Then he noticed other ninja attacking the villagers, driving them back.

"Get back! By order of the Hokage, this boy is not to be harmed!"

"What do you mean? This is a demon waiting to be unleashed on our town! If he dies, then the threat dies forever as well!"

The jounin shinobi who made the proclamation growled in anger. "Do you forget what his line has done for our city..."

An older villager interrupted. "His father is to be honored, yes! It is sad that his kid is the bearer of such misfortune, but that misfortune threatens all of us. He must be put down!"

"By order of the Hokage, what you speak of is forbidden! Nor disperse or _you_ will be the ones we put down!"

Mitarashi Anko scooped up the child and nodded to the shinobi. "I have him, sir! I'll have him taken home."

The jounin nodded as the villagers began to disperse back into their homes. As the pitchforks and the torches were laid down, extinguished, a relative calm came back, as the second part of Anko's plan came back into focus, as she sped off to the outskirts of the city, as the guards let her out of the village, as they were also willing participants in her plan.

After about a mile into the forest, Anko merely smiled at the kid. Naruto, obviously scared and confused tried to talk.

"You take Naruto home?"

Anko merely gave a poisonous smile. "No, kid, not yet. Listen, I knew your father, the Yondaime Hokage, and he was a great man, just like you were supposed to be. But there's something about yourself you need to know. Do you have any dreams?"

Naruto smiled. "Yes, good dreams with bunnies and pigs." He then frowned a bit as he remembered something else. "Bad dreams about big fox on fire telling me bad things, wanting to get out."

"That fox, kid, is Kyuubi, and he nearly destroyed our village two years ago. That is what your father sealed in you to save us. And as much as I don't want to, in order to save the village..."

Anko took out a kunai and held it to the throat of the toddler, as a mark on her shoulder glimmered slightly. She grimaced a bit, but held back the waves of pain going through her. Her gaze at Naruto, which was once smiling, melted a bit at the kid's look of fear. He reminded her so much about the Yondaime, about his father Arashi. But now, even as her convictions began to falter, her voice remained firm, if laced with sadness.

"I have to kill you, of all people. I don't want to kill the son of the Yondaime Hokage, but I don't have a choice. You need to die for all of our sakes. Yondaime, forgive me for what I must do!"

A crack to her skull ended her indecision as the last thing she saw was a black dire wolf dropping to the ground, growling angrily, growling _hungrily._

* * *

As Anko awoke, only a few minutes later, she saw the dire wolf once more. It then hit her that the boy was a true innocent and there should have been a way around it. She had full intent of killing the boy, but whatever knocked her out, knocked some sense into her. Her eyes then looked to the pool of blood on the ground and the bits of tattered clothing the wolf had in its mouth. 

The clothes of a toddler, soaked in blood.

_'The child was an innocent...'_

The wolf continued to chew at the clothing, disinterested in the shocked human.

_'Innocent... completely innocent... he couldn't help being born the way he was...'_

A ripping noise later found that the wolf tore away at the portion of the clothing that wasn't bloodied and it continued to chew.

_'Innocent... blood of an innocent... oh Kami, what have I done?_'

Anko then roared and threw a kunai at the wolf, her gaze blinded by a red coat of blood that seemed to radiate pure rage. The dire wolf, a little surprised at being attacked, surmised correctly that the human had a few screws loose, and was a danger to its existence, smartly bolted into the woods, leaving no sound or trace.

Anko then tried to find the wolf, but then remembered what it was_. 'Shadow wolf, the Kageurufu, rare, and they don't leave trails, scent, or tracks.'_

The wolf had devoured the toddler, and now she was denied redemption for attempted murder, by failing to kill the true murderer. She could never go back to the Leaf, she would have to become a missing-nin in order to survive. The tears began to pool in her eyes as realization hit her like an anvil.

_'The boy was an innocent, but had strength in him...'_

_'He didn't deserve death, despite what others may have thought...'_

_'The Hokage was right, he needed compassion, not anger.'_

_'He needed protection from danger... not this... nobody deserved this...'_

_'No body left to mourn. From the kin of one of the greatest shinobi ever to exist, to being a meal for a beast. Ironic... wasn't it?'_

It was ironic, as the tears hit silently on the ground, and as she turned she saw the wide eyes of Umino Iruka.

Iruka merely looked stunned, not seeing the wolf. All he saw in front of him was his senpai, the one who helped him gain the rank of Chuunin less than a year ago, someone who's always been there for him despite her curse, The Heaven Seal, one that should have killed her but didn't. Now she just lives with the curse, given to her by her former sensei, Orochimaru.

He also noticed the tattered pieces of clothing, only able to stare at the blood and at Anko.

"Anko-senpai! You... you didn't... please tell me you..."

Anko merely grabbed onto Iruka and sobbed her eyes out, telling him everything, from her intent to kill, to her hesitation, being knocked out and finally of the _kageurufu_ that had the blonde toddler's bloodied clothing in its mouth. She was disgusted in herself in two conflicting ways, that she lacked the internal fortitude by taking an innocent child here in the first place, and being unable to kill when she was made to be exactly that, a tool of death.

Iruka saw the conflict in his senpai's words and on her face. He was saddened that the child was taken in the first place, but saw no lie in her words. The child was killed, but not by her hands, and it appeared she was about to relent, but for a tragic happenstance. He sighed and helped her to her feet.

"Let's go home. The Hokage will need to know of this."

He took her arm on his shoulders and they sped off towards Konohagakure.

* * *

"To think I was actually trying to make my peace with the Leaf, and they go and do this! Lucky I was there, kid or you would have been wolf chow." 

The speaker was a blond woman who appeared to be in her late twenties to early thirties. The one she spoke to was a child who was sleeping peacefully, exhausted from the misadventures of the evening. He merely snuggled against the large assets of the woman who carried him. She chuckled a bit.

"Don't get _too _comfortable there. I might mistake you for an old teammate of mine, bloody pervert that he was."

A woman with short black hair and dark eyes appeared from behind. "Tsunade-sama, they've gone past the gates."

"And the response at the gates for those two Chuunin, Shizune-chan?"

Shizune sighed. "Rather heated, Tsunade-sama. The Hokage seemed to be rather upset with a few of the other Shinobi who were part of an assassination attempt. I think most of them won't be around very much longer."

"And the one who apparently tried to kill the boy?"

"Just as I saw, she seemed to falter. I doubt she would have killed him. She was foolish to bring him here, but it was a brilliant plan, if she only carried it out. Monstrous, but brilliant. The wolf would have made a perfect alibi. I think Sandaime knows that the child is alive, but will be keeping the secret."

Tsunade snorted. "And another dead Shinobi probably. That wolf could have killed both of them if you didn't rip the boy from it's grasp. I... I just couldn't..."

Shizune smiled. "Don't be sorry, Tsunade-sama. We got the boy out, isn't that what matters?"

Tsunade then smiled and nodded. _'She doesn't know about my hematophobia, my fear of blood. I was frightened when the boy was bit. Thankfully the bite was light and I could heal it, after Shizune cleaned him up. That copied pool of blood, however, was a bit much.'_

Shizune looked at the boy. After Naruto was bit, Shizune knocked the wolf back and used a jutsu to enlarge the drops of blood from the ground, then tore off the shirt and dropped it in there. The wolf snarled, yet after seeing the pool of blood, it seemed disinterested and proceeded to get the shirt.

"What was the boy's name, Tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade then looked at the boy and gasped. "He's Yondaime's son, Uzumaki Naruto!"

* * *

A/N: So... Tsunade has Naruto with her. What is the money-hungry sannin going to do with Naruto? Tune into the next chapter, as it will hopefully be much longer than this one! 


	2. And the Brat Makes Three

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
_by Darklion74_**

* * *

A/N:

Disclaimer is in chapter one. Surprised, weren't you? Well for further entertainment, Kyuubi, my muse (God help me), will read off your reviews, I think. He's a bit foul tempered so I need to keep him on a leash to make sure he doesn't cause too much...

**"Keep WHOM on a leash? And where was the meal you promised me? I'm STARVING!!"**

-Sigh- See what I mean? Anyways, back to the story.

* * *

**Chapter Two  
And the Brat Makes Three**

Mitarashi Anko knelt in the office of the Sandaime Hokage, her face bedraggled and her hair messed up, which was normal for the young Chuunin, but her expression was worn and without life, which wasn't. Her eyes were on the floor, tears showing in her eyes.

The Hokage let her kneel there for over an hour, without saying even one word except to keep silent for that time. His face was stern, in fact, it was almost murderous in expression. After the hour passed, he stood up and looked at the Cursed Heaven Seal on Anko's arm. He performed another jutsu, as a few seals appeared in a faint spectrum of color, then disappeared. Sandaime merely sighed and sat back down, his face softening, but the anger still apparent from his voice.

"A possession jutsu and a very strong one too. Must have been a gift from him. Where did I go wrong in teaching that boy?"

Anko gasped and went to speak, but fell silent and turn to the floor.

Sandaime's tone of voice became neutral and business-like. "You are cleared of all charges save one, being outside of the city without prior authorization. I'm fining you one half of mission pay for the next month."

Anko looked up, surprise on her face. This sentence was all but an exoneration, almost complete redemption, something she could not possibly deserve after seeing that face. "I can't accept this, Hokage-sama."

The anger came back. "What do you mean, you can't accept? I told you that you were free..."

"No! That is why I can't accept it. All I see is that child's bloodied clothing in front of me. That wolf chewing on it, but I don't see the clothing, I see _him_ being chewed on. I hear the screams from that child... I can barely sleep. I'm supposed to be a ninja, damn it! I'm not supposed to be having these nightmares... I'm not supposed to..."

Anko's tear-ridden rant was cut short when the Sandaime's hand was placed gently on her shoulder. His eyes had softened, and his voice had concerned compassion for it. "You are not merely Shinobi, you are also _human. _As the letter of the law goes, Orochimaru gave you that possession seal. It broke fully the moment you saw the boy's torn rags of clothing. I think, however, I have a way that you can start on the path of atonement, if only in your own mind."

Anko looked up, her eyes seeking answers.

"You are aware of what's happening this year in the Lightning Country, yes?"

Anko opened her eyes wide, not expecting _that _question.

* * *

Tsunade was resting after another losing day at the casino... she seemed to lose money almost every single time she found a casino. This merely caused the other people in near her to sigh, that being five-year-old Naruto and of course, Shizune. Three years had passed since that day and Naruto was beginning to learn a few things, as Shizune thought he was old enough to learn the arts of the Shinobi. Everyone was in one of the hotel rooms, while Shizune had managed to keep enough cash hidden on her to spend for the room, and for lunch.

Naruto however was not a happy camper as his current target was a rat who ran off with the last bite of his sandwich. He ended up peppering the floor with needles, but not hitting the rat once. The rat merely looked at him, chomped down the last of Naruto's meal, stuck its tongue out and ran into a hole in the wall.

"Come back here you lunch-stealing piece of cat food!"

Tsunade merely spoke in an icily calm voice "Naruto."

The five-year-old boy merely froze in his tracks, his eyes wide with fear. Over the last three years, he knew that tone of voice, and that it was useless to run from it. He meekly stepped over to Tsunade, his fists together and his index fingers twirling around each other nervously. "H-Hai, Tsunade-kaasan?"

Tsunade merely smiled, her icy tone of voice conveying the importance of her words and her hand stroking Naruto's chin. "Do you remember what I said about practicing?"

"Ummm... you didn't want me to practice? You then said I could learn from Shizune-sensei..."

Tsunade's smile merely intensified, as her tone slowly became more heated. "No, no, no, my boy. Did you remember the _other_ thing I said about practicing, or should I say _where_ you could practice?"

"Oh yeah not to practice..."

Naruto gulped audibly as he remembered Tsunade's rule. "..._inside._"

"And why were you practicing inside? Trying to get a rat, eh? Or were you aiming for my new shoes!?"

Tsunade merely pointed at two red-heeled shoes that were totally perforated with needles.

Naruto gulped. It wasn't that he was a bad boy by nature, he just seemed so animated, as his eyes filled with tears. "G-gomen, okaasan! I didn't mean to do that..."

"Then why did you do..."

Tsunade merely oofed as Naruto hugged her with all of his five-year-old might. Then he said the four words that always stopped a possible rampage, not because it was contrived, but that the fear in the boy's mind was real, more so than any rampage that Tsunade could do.

"Please don't leave me!"

It was always the same, Tsunade didn't want the child to be left alone. She had grown fond of the brat, very fond in fact. It was almost as if, after looking at Naruto, and seeing the past, that part of her past came back, as he reminded her in a few ways about her long departed little brother. Also that she appeared in a way to be the son... the very _child,_ she never had.

Tsunade sighed and calmed the crying boy. "Big boys don't cry, do they Naruto?"

With that, Naruto stopped crying, as if something else came back to him, his pride. He was a big boy now, he was five years old and trying to be a ninja. Ninjas don't cry, do they? He shook his head and smiled lightly.

"Now, I think it's time you learned something. If you're going to be _this_ reckless, you'll need to know how to fix things up. Now, let's take a look at these shoes, they're in pretty poor shape, don't you think?"

Naruto grimaced and nodded.

"Now listen, this is something you do if it is _needed_, understood? Not if someone else _wants _it, but needs it. It has a bit of a toll on one's body if done too often."

"Tsunade-kaasan, what does toll mean?"

Tsunade merely smiled sadly, remembering the genjutsu she constantly wore to hide what her medic-nin skills did to her in response. "It means a price. It will hurt when you do it, but you do it not to hurt yourself, but to help another."

"Something like what you did to help me against that bad wolf?"

Tsunade nodded.

"Is that why you use... genji, genja... ummm..."

Shizune intervened. "Genjutsu?"

Naruto nodded then looked seriously at Tsunade. "Is that why you hide yourself in genjutsu, okaasan?"

Tsunade and Shizune opened their eyes wide. _'The boy can see through genjutsu? Shizune, what have you been teaching this boy?!'_

"How did you know this, Naruto?"

Naruto merely explained that during Shizune's lessons, she tried to make a few things that weren't there to make him dodge and train. When he didn't move he explained why, that his old bite mark started to sting a bit and made the make-believe things seem less real. Just as the bite wound always stung a bit whenever he saw Tsunade.

Tsunade was aghast. Naruto could see _through _her genjutsu, and it was all because of that damned wolf. It gave him the ability to be all but _immune_ to illusion. Even the one that makes her look young. "Naruto... I..."

Naruto placed a small finger on his surrogate mother's lips, then hugged her tight. "Okaasan is still Okaasan."

Tsunade started to shake, then shudder, as tears slowly fell down her face, then for the first time since her beloved Dan died, she cried, long and hard. Not for all of the aching and angst, but for the first time, just as she accepted Naruto for what he was, the vessel of Kyuubi... he in turn had accepted her, and all of her flaws.

Even Shizune had tears in her eyes. "Tsunade-sama."

The voice brought Tsunade back and stopped the tears, as she coughed slightly, then wiped the tears from her eyes. "Naruto-chan. Shizune and I are going to take turns teaching you, and your first task, is to fix the other shoe, using what I'm about to show you."

Tsunade then knelt to one of the destroyed shoes, removing the needles from around it, closed her eyes as a ball of blue chakra formed in her hand and pressed it toward the shoe. The cured leather seemed to close and the needles simply came right out of it. She then slowly explained the use of chakra and how it was used to do this. Naruto paid rapt attention.

And thus began Naruto's training, guided by the Legendary Sucker, Tsunade.

* * *

After everyone went off for a good night's sleep, Naruto had another good dream with all of the fuzzy bunnies he could think of, as well as pigs that could fly. But he also had something else interrupt his dreams, that of a large shadow that streaked out of the grass. It made him turn and run, to run away from this shadow that seemed to be hungry, as it had black teeth that almost didn't seem real, but in fact were real. This was the wolf that bit him, the teeth that made him see beyond mommy's genjutsu makeup. As the wolf went in to strike...

...he woke up with a fright, only to see a man in an iron mask that had a dog painted on it staring at him unseen behind the mask.

"Yo."

Naruto was nonplussed. He remembered this guy, the one that came from somewhere to talk to Tsunade every once in awhile. Naruto always had that nightmare when this inconsiderate masked man was about to show up. The kid never appreciated the facts that the guy only came at night and seemed to always wake him up.

"Tsunade-kaasan is in the other room. Now lemme sleep Kakashi-San."

The leaf ANBU looked over Naruto with a bit of a glance, nodded, then vanished only to appear in the other room, as Shizune had her arm-darts already loaded, tipped with venom, and aimed at the intruder. Tsunade merely sat in her chair, and looked over the bill for the room.

"So, Kakashi. What does Sarutobi-sensei want to speak to me about?"

Hakate Kakashi, age nineteen, ANBU captain within the leaf, merely shrugged. "He just wanted to know how the kid was doing. Only the four of us know he's alive, you, Shizune-san, Hokage-sama, and me. He wants it kept that way for a few more years."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. This was _not_ the usual message that her former sensei sent, even if it was the normal courier. "So Kakashi, what does he intend for Naruto."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow lazily from behind his mask, as he leaned back against the wall, seeming to not have a care in the world. "Simple, he wants you to train him for the next six years, then return him to be accepted as a Genin from the Leaf Academy."

Tsunade rose from her chair to grab Kakashi by the throat. "And what do you mean by taking Naruto from me? If I remember correctly the Leaf tried to kill..."

Kakashi merely behind Tsunade, as even Shizune couldn't tell where he was. His voice was now calm, but had a bit of mirth in it. "Now, now, Tsunade-san. Please stop molesting that log. What would Naruto think if you were into that sort of stuff?"

Tsunade's blood began to boil as she crushed the log in her hand with her bare fist, then slapped Kakashi mildly, meaning he only bounced off of one wall instead of crashing through it. "PERVERT!"

"Ow, ow... well, yes I am. But it wasn't the Leaf that tried to kill him... it was another one of your teammates."

"Jiraya? Now why would he... no... it couldn't be..."

Kakashi nodded. "Possession. Katsueki Batafurai no Jutsu. Supposedly a very powerful one, as well as subtle, usually accompanies other Seals as an add-on."

The discussion continued, unaware of footfalls from the hallway.

* * *

Naruto was indeed usually a very polite boy, as Tsunade drilled manners into him at an early age. Aunt Shizune was usually the one who taught and helped the boy with the basics of life, while Tsunade taught him manners, medic jutsu, and controlling chakra to turn into enormous strength. But that crash that came from next door, woke him up again and he padded quickly but silently next door.

_"it wasn't the Leaf that tried to kill him..."_

Naruto almost stepped back from that statement from behind the door. _'What? That was a lie! The leaf DID try to kill me, then that wolf certainly would have if it wasn't for Shizune-sensei and Tsunade-kaasan.'_

_"...it was another one of your teammates"_

Teammates? Okaasan's teammates? What was going on? Was there something more behind the Leaf trying to kill him?

_"Jiraya? Now why would he... no... it couldn't be..."_

_"Possession. Katsueki Batafurai no Jutsu. Supposedly a very powerful one, as well as subtle, usually accompanies other Seals as an add-on."_

With this, Naruto fled silently back to his room as the discussion went uninterrupted. The five-year-old had heard enough. It was true, the leaf didn't try to kill him. From what he had heard, he reasoned it out. It was someone else, some mean man who put that seal on that scary lady. Someone else who used that possession to try to kill him.

He thought that from what Tsunade told him, that Jiraya, though a pervert, was actually a decent fighter and somewhat a decent man. But it was clear, Jiraya had something to fear from him and wanted him dead. But why use that scary lady?

It was clear enough, as he cut himself with a kunai.

"I vow to make you pay for what you did to the Leaf and to me, Jiraya."

* * *

A/N:

The author comes out as a demonic fox-like creature sits behind the desk with a stack of reviews.

"Review time with Kyuubi! I'd like to thank everyone for reading this little work of mine and note that not all of my chapters are going to be done in as quick a fashion as this one. Now, please allow the evil fox that is my muse to answer your reviews. Take it away, Kyuubi!"

**"Whatever. First in our reviews are La-La and David with words of encouragement. Hmph, like this guy really needs it."**

"Kyuubi... watch it!"

**"Fine, fine, looking down the list, similar hopes from gopu and Wormkaizer. Hoping for a NaruHina fic, eh? Heh heh, nothing I love more than dashing hopes."**

The author taps his foot impatiently. "No comment on the pairing yet, though I have an idea."

**"Next up is... Naru-chan?"** The fox laughs insanely and starts to froth from the mouth.

**"Nice way to refer to my PRISON OF ETERNAL DAMNATION, Angelmidori, this muse feels loved... NOT! Next, yadda-yadda more niceties from Peter Kim, mr. mistery unknown guy, another somebody, I think, Night-Owl123, Kurisuteru-chan, Odor, demonic-haku, izumi, etc, etc. Some of whom note that this is a fairly new twist with using Tsunade as the brat's teacher. Yeah I gotta admit that is unusual, for the only grace that it's almost never, if it has been _ever_ used."**

"Okay, back to your cage!"

**"No, no, no, you are NOT sending me back to Naruto yet, not until I finish the others. Gelionlegends has something I want YOU to answer fully."**

The author reads then takes a thoughtful pose. "No idea."

The fox sweatdrops**. "You are certainly a source of no useful information. No information at all to be exact! However as for meeting Jiraya, I think that will..."**

The author coughs lightly. "No trade secrets, fox!"

**"Fine! But now I have something to address to the conservative side of Maboroshi-hime. The plot is a tad-overused, eh?"**

The fox goes psycho and tries to run amok tearing the desk apart and eating the equipment, shouting obscenities at every opportunity. The author is forced to collar the fox and shove him back into the seal. "BAD fox! No dinner for you!"

An audible whine is heard from the stomach of Naruto.

Thus ends "Review Time with Kyuubi!" I may not have him answer EVERY review from now on, but note on the more detailed ones, as this is cramping my fingers in typing so much. Hope to see everyone for the next chapter!


	3. Foxbite Curse within the Wave

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
by Darklion74**

* * *

A/N: 

I thought that a few people would be missing the point at the end there, which was in a sense, intentional. Remember one thing, neither Naruto nor you, my faithful readers, ever heard the _entire_ discussion. The fox will address your questions at the end... neh?

_Kyuubi is seen behind the desk holding up a sign - "Fox on Strike, he's not addressing each review personally... TOO MANY TO ADDRESS"_

Alas, the fox is being difficult yet again. Price of success, over thirty reviews in only two chapters, this must have caught some people's interest I guess. :D This story is moving along nicely, but my other one is a tad stalled. Hopefully once I get up to chapter four or five, I can get the energy to complete the chapter in my other crossover story. In the meantime, on with the show!

* * *

**Chapter Three  
Foxbite Curse within the Wave**

Hyuuga Hinata, only six years of age, was trying to fight hard against her father in a training session, trying to prove that she had sufficient strength, to herself and to her father. In all of the years of her life, she heard kindness from her mother and from a few in the branch family, but never a word of praise or compassion from the one she sought it from most.

She had some of the talent of the Hyuuga, and was actually rather decent in Taijutsu, but she was talked down to all of the time. She needed to be better, she needed to please her father. She needed to prove she was worthy of being head of the household one day. Yet something distracted her that day.

Flashes from when she was young, what she saw outside of her window when she was only two... she couldn't see it, per se, but she felt as though she was in the middle of it... angry villagers, rounding a boy, but in doing so, they were attacking her too. Yet she was never even there. Then the wolf; she had seen a wolf of pure shadow come out and strike...

That night, she was found on the Hyuuga Manor, bleeding very badly from a mysterious bite, as well as being very badly bruised, as if attacked by an invisible monster.

"Hinata! Snap out of it!"

Hinata blinked then looked at her combat uniform near her thigh. Surely enough, it had begun to bleed again, and it was never even struck. This seemed to happen once every year, but it didn't merely affect Hinata. The entire village was effected by it, though nothing more than a nightmare in most. It affected others too. It was said to be a curse, a curse from the fox for forcing him out. The Shinobi refused to believe in a curse that affected an entire village, but the villagers were not so certain.

Hyuuga Hiashi, head of the clan noticed the reopened wound yet again. He knew this was no coincidence but had no good explanation for her. He knew Hinata was an innocent brought down by what they as Shinobi failed to do, protecting Naruto from the anger of the villagers. He remembered, for he was the Jounin who forced away the crowds that day, only for him to make a mistake in trusting Mitarashi Anko.

He had failed, along with all other Shinobi, and aside from a select few and the Hokage, he knew that Konohagakure had it's very own curse. It was fortunate, that it only affected the village one day per year, for reasons unknown, for it seemed it should have had worse ramifications. He learned of the curse from the Hokage, and that it was indeed related to Kyuubi, and the curse was also known by his traitorous student, Orochimaru.

"G-gomen, father, I was dis..."

Hiashi kept a firm voice as he interrupted, unlike the harsh voice he used during other times of the year. "A warrior must never be distracted, even by the unexpected. You saw it again, didn't you? You saw _him_ again?"

Hinata merely nodded as she tended to her reopened wound. A wound of which she never understood the origin, only that it nearly killed her that day four years ago. Father always acted strange on this day, and she never understood that either. He knew something, but wasn't ready to say anything about it.

"You have to forget about him, Hinata. For the sake of yourself, the clan, and the village, you _must_ forget about him. It does no good to dwell on that part of the past."

As he walked away, like he always did, there was a current of fear running through him, that Hinata, just like the other children near her age, were affected nearly as badly, if not as badly as she was. For some reason she had a very powerful connection to the fox-child which she never even suspected herself. Nobody did. Could it have been karma? Fate?

As much as he showed indifference, he cared about his daughter more than she was ever allowed to know. He wanted her to be the leader he was, and as such could not show such emotions of weakness around her. He nearly broke his cold shell today, and could never allow to be so weak ever again.

He prayed that it wasn't karma, for everyone's sake.

* * *

"M-must k-keep control..." 

Mitarashi Anko, now a Jounin of the village was always given this day off, as well as her genin team of students. Now in her rather disheveled apartment, with bottles of sake on the floor turning into a pile, the sole genin student of Orochimaru was writhing as one curse, compounded with the foxbite, threatened to overtake her.

The combination was first seen one year after she had taken Naruto into the woods, as she made a late night report to the Sandaime Hokage. When midnight had struck, both her leg started to bleed badly, and her curse seal began to grow, leaving her effectively out of commission. She barely survived it that year, and barely kept control.

This was why, ten minutes before midnight for the past four years, she manacled herself to the wall of her apartment, in the hopes that it would restrain her somewhat if she ever lost control fully, keeping casualties at a minimum. Sandaime noted she was far stronger than she thought she was.

As midnight came again, the curse receded back into her body and the bleeding stopped, leaving only the open wound, which was really a light bite from a large wolf, but in truth was a curse from the fox. His mortal shell was nearly killed and he had suffered as the boy had suffered. He wanted everyone to remember.

Mitarashi Anko could never forget, for she held yet a third curse, the guilt from taking such an innocent boy into the woods in the first place. And as she survived yet another year with this, she did the same thing once again...

...unlocked herself, crept in her bed, and started to weep.

* * *

Naruto sighed, as he looked at the place they were going to stay in. It was a rustic seaport with only one real attraction, the largest casino in the Country of the Wave. Shizune also seemed to sigh at the same time, having the same thoughts as her adopted nephew. Tsunade on the other hand was ready to blow even more money in the casino. 

Tsunade walked giddily as they approached the casino. "Ah, Naruto-chan, this is going to be a day off from training while mommy Tsunade works on building some wealth. HAHAHAHA!"

Both Naruto and Shizune sighed and shook their heads. Even at the tender age of six, Naruto knew enough that his mother's biggest weakness was gambling. He didn't find anything too wrong about it, just that his mother was the worst gambler in ages, and not to leave ANY money in her sight, otherwise it would be gone.

_'Building wealth, okaasan? I guess if you mean you're building the wealth of the casinos. We don't seem to get any wealthier, though.'_

In their path however was a bit of an altercation. There were a number of bandits accosting two people in the street. One seemed to be rather lithe, only a little older than Naruto himself, and the other, was unconscious and bleeding on the ground. The bandits were however all covered in masks and had _hitai-ate_ that had a cloud symbol on them.

Tsunade cursed. "Cloud ANBU? Here in the Wave Country? What is going on?"

Before the trio could get away, the ANBU threw a lightning fast shuriken that struck Shizune in the chest, knocking her to the ground. She seemed to be convulsing as well as... burning.

Naruto, noticing that Shizune was being electrocuted by the shuriken, kicked the shuriken out of her chest with his wooden shoe, which repulsed the current away from him. Tsunade rushed the ANBU as blow after blow sent the surprised shinobi flying hundreds of meters, if not a bit more than a kilometer away, and each to an equally fatal collision or landing.

Tsunade turned, as she was worried one may have gotten behind her to Naruto. However, the young boy was merely doing a healing jutsu on Shizune, and doing it rather well, too. The sannin was startled at the surprising amount of chakra the boy possessed on his own, much less the turbulent chakra of the Kyuubi within him. That training must have really paid off, for the boy stood up after barely breaking a sweat with the medic jutsu.

Shizune stood wearily, still disoriented from the electricity, as was helped to a seated position. Tsunade then tended to the unconscious man, a very large man with a gigantic blade on the ground next to him. He then noticed that he too, had an _hitai-ate_. This one was of the mist village, but it was crossed out. After the healing was complete, an almost instinctive notion by the sannin, Tsunade backed away, the blood on the man a bit much for her to take.

The large man and the dark haired youngster were missing nin. The youngster seemed to have a feminine grace and cunning, albeit weary from the experience. The larger man was recognized immediately by Tsunade, as she remembered tales of his ruthless exploits as part of the mist village.

"Momichi Zabuza, I presume."

The large man looked up and merely nodded. "You have dangerous knowledge, lady, but you also have my thanks. To have taken out as many ANBU as you have, you have some skills... it can't be... Tsunade!"

The dark-haired youngster turned around in alarm at the mention of the Legendary Sannin. This woman was Tsunade, the monstrously powerful medic-nin of the leaf, and former student of the Sandaime Hokage? He then looked at the blonde-haired boy who was wiping his head after performing a high-class medic-nin jutsu. _'He can do such a powerful jutsu, and he's even younger than me!'_

The youngster smiled genuinely at Naruto, "Ano, that was pretty impressive healing. Did she teach you that?"

Naruto looked up at the missing-nin and smiled cautiously. "Hai, okaasan taught me that."

Momichi Zabuza blinked a bit at that revelation. _'Okaasan? Tsunade is his mother? I admit there is some resemblance, more than a bit, but... it doesn't seem right, he's somewhat too young to be her son. Perhaps he's traveled with her so long that he thinks of her as a mother.'_

"Haku, let's get going. We don't know what that bloody magnate Sakuraba Shion is going to pull next. If she has funds to hire ANBU, who knows what they are going to pull next."

A couple of blurs sped by and more _hitai-ate _of mist missing-nin appeared, clad in black, and their faces hidden, both wielding long chains that looked like each link possessed a sharp knife. They appeared to be Chuunin. "Sensei, are you alright? We were delayed by some... cunning traps."

Zabuza merely waved away their concern. "I'm fine, though I admit, if it wasn't for some timely intervention, we'd have been killed." He then looked Tsunade dead in the eye. "I don't like owing people favors, but I do. And I intend to pay back for what you did for Haku and myself."

Zabuza then became somewhat thoughtful, as he glanced at Haku.

"I know this is an imposition, but I have one more favor to ask, Tsunade-hime, and perhaps in this favor, pay back for what you have done for me. While the life you lead is dangerous, mine is imperiled daily. The boy here was intended to be my tool, but it would seem to be more useful to you as both an instructor for your young kid over there. He's the equivalent of a Chuunin of the Mist and can further help his medic-nin skills."

Haku looked back, his eyes fearful. "No! Please, sensei, let me stay with you!"

Zabuza growled back. "Be quiet, Haku! I know you want me to fulfill my dreams, yet you have your own life to live, and now that I realize it, I want you to live as good a life as possible. You cannot do so as a missing-nin under me. But perhaps you can do so under the wing of Tsunade-hime, if she will have you."

Tsunade tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Well, it seems Naruto-chan does need a bit of a role-model for a brother. And it seems that Haku-chan needs family too." Naruto grumbled a bit at the "needing a role-model" part but was silenced by a glare from the Sannin.

Zabuza grinned under the bandages that made up his face mask. "Very well, I wish you all luck. And know you have made a friend with the Demon of the Mist." With those words, the mist missing-nin all blurred out of sight, over the water, running over it as if it were a solid road. Haku sighed, trying to hold back the tears of the sudden separation.

Naruto went up and looked at his new 'brother'. "Haku-san, it'll be alright, Tsunade-kaasan will take good care of us."

Tsunade then welcomed her new charge to the group, with a kiss to his forehead, then quick as a blink, dashed off into the casino, leaving all three outside with a huge sweat-drop.

"Correction, it'll be alright, _once we get okaasan out of the casino._"

* * *

A/N: Well, that was somewhat unexpected, but next chapter... umm... no I won't say anything yet, just that it will be yet another reunion and the fists are going to fly. Oh, and Sakuraba Shion will be making somewhat of an impact in later chapter. What type of impact is not yet determined. For now, let's go to Kyuubi with a bit of an explanation of the jutsu of last chapter, then the reviews! Take it away, furball. 

**"I feel so happy... yeah, now that I have that out of my system... the sole jutsu introduced from Chapter Two, the name of the possession jutsu used on Anko, Katsueki Batafurai no Jutsu, or literally translated Blood Butterfly Technique. As mentioned it can be made as an enhancement to a sealing jutsu, and like the Heaven Seal, it too is a kinjutsu, a forbidden technique."**

Now that the explanation is finished, let me thank everyone who reviewed again this chapter, as I never expected to see so many reviews in so little time. Even the ones who accidentally reviewed twice :).

**"Blah, blah, whatever. Kudos given to the two who did not identify themselves so I am now unable to hunt them down and eat them. Raph Michael, Esanime, Bardot, Kori Nibiki, GhostDragon, Jinnai, Mariel4000, silverblueenchantress, thanks again, etc etc. KingKyuubiFan has a point, though, Dark, why DON'T you let me out and slaughter a couple hundred people, maybe a score or two, a dozen? Please??"**

Keep... reading... furball.

**"GULP! Ummm... moving along (he's always testy in the morning)."**

Move it!!

**"Okay! Peter Kim's note was all but explained in the beginning notes. Yes, we know that Naruto thinks Jiraya did it, yes it is a mistake, he didn't hear the whole conversation or even ONE mention of Orochimaru! He was five years old when he made that reasoning, and as smart a five-year-old as he was, it's likely his reasoning is going to be rash, mistaken, or more than likely, both. I however can't WAIT for the toad-sannin to come in and be beaten to a pulp like the filthy toad-summoner that he is so richly deserving..."**

Ahem!

**"Gee, way to spoil a good rant! The last review of note is from Lita of Jupiter, do I smell a Sailor Senshi fan? SNIFF! SNIFF! No matter. Kakashi, though facing a stronger person in Tsunade, is very skilled himself, very perverted, and is in fact a genius ninja. Out of all of the Jounin in the leaf during the manga series, he is by far one of the most skilled and powerful. Ummm, can I 'borrow' his book, Dark?"**

If you can get it from him, by all means, after you finish.

**"Right, right, kudos to gopu, angelmidori, Night-Owl123, Wormkaizer for sticking with him, done and done! Now I'm hunting down that book!"**

And as the fox leaves the studio to harass Kakashi about his book, this ends another chapter. See everyone later! Please leave reviews! They make me happy and drive him batty!


	4. The Peril of the Springs

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
by Darklion74**

* * *

A/N:

Kyuubi is not happy with me, but I am happy with the fic so far. Over fifty reviews in three chapters. Probably no record, but who cares, it's more successful than my other fic, which I am working on, just at a slower pace. Kyuubi is looking at the number of reviews and is seething with rage, probably going to directly involve fewer people. He's getting lazy... well, maybe he won't get to it at all... I see him reading Kakashi's book. 6-.-

Ah well, let's see what trouble I can cause now.

* * *

**Chapter Four  
The Peril of the Springs**

Tsunade was still reeling a bit from the last letters that the Hokage had sent according to the continuing correspondence between the two. She was still unhappy about the idea of Naruto having to go back to the village in merely another two years. The young blonde was nine years old now, and Haku himself was ten. The Hokage had ordered a scroll be delivered for the young children to learn, but not to do any of the techniques once at the academy until they become genin.

One of the techniques in the scroll that both could do was the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, which both had mastered in a frighteningly short period of time. It wasn't the scroll that bothered Shizune and Tsunade so much, but the contents of the letter. And the description of the curse from what the Hokage had researched. She read the remainder of the letter.

_"The curse itself seems to manifest everyone in the village, and the main portions of the curse were the Kyuubi, who was injured through Naruto, and the apparent bite from the kageurufu. Kyuubi apparently used that bite as a conduit to curse everyone in the village. This is reality, my dear pupil, and not another wild story, I promise you. Those affected most are the ones who were most involved (only one of whom survives), and those closer to Naruto's age (most of the eight to ten year olds), who suffer great pain during that day. The rest of us suffer a nightmare of that day, which vanish in the minds of the villagers, but not in mind, nor in those who suffer most."_

_"It seems the only way the curse will be lifted, is for Naruto to be accepted once again in Konoha. This will not be an easy task, for as everyone, excluding us, believes that Naruto has been long dead and buried. You must take care with this subject around Naruto. Tell as much or as little of the curse as you feel fit. You know him more now than I can ever claim to know him myself. He's been in your care for eight years, Tsunade-chan, and from what I hear, you've raised him well."_

_"Be cautious with your dealings with Momichi Zabuza. He is not to be trusted, however it seems his former charge can be. Sakuraba Shion is a respected businesswoman and has been a client of the Leaf Village in the past. For now keep a wary eye out for anything suspicious, just as I have taught you. Now go on and raise them as you need to, but remember, Naruto **must** eventually come home."_

_"With highest regards and affection, your teacher, Sarutobi."_

Tsunade sighed deeply as she burned the letter, just as she burned all the letters that came before it. She kept this letter far longer than the others though, since she was fond of the old man in a distant way, albeit he was a pervert and managed to pass it down to her teammate Jiraya. The letter did have an important note, aside from the effects of the curse. Naruto had to go home. _'Just so he can be used to rid the Leaf of a curse that was well deserved, even if Orochimaru set it up? How can he be so...'_

Then it hit her, it wasn't for the villagers' sake at all, at least not _all _of them. It was for the sake of the innocent ones who were struck down as well, and struck hardest, their children. Eight years ago, before she even met Naruto, she would not have given a damn. Let the little buggers rot for all she cared. But now, having practically raised Naruto and Haku, she had to say that such a thing would be devastating to her if she was a parent.

In a very real sense, she was. She couldn't ignore this call, and knew she had to return to the Leaf in two years, bringing a reluctant Naruto behind her.

She saw the children training outside, and it astounded her at the level of ability they had already attained as youngsters. Naruto had approached a Chuunin level of ability if not higher, and Haku was close to that of a Jounin. They had both taught each other all of the techniques they could. Even now, as Haku practiced some of the medic-nin techniques, Naruto practiced with the Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu.

She didn't want to bring them to the leaf. She didn't want to return to the leaf. She didn't want to lose them. With those depressing thoughts, she wept quietly in her bed until the haze of alcohol and exhaustion caught up with her, and she finally slept.

The following day would hopefully be better.

* * *

The next place that the group visited was a Hot Spring, not too far away from the Leaf village. It was a little close for Tsunade's liking, but it could have been worse. She declared that both of the boys needed to relax, at least for one day, if they didn't want their muscles to get overworked. They protested lightly, since they were, in truth, still in a bit of pain from overtaxing themselves day in and day out, but quickly capitulated, finding one of the mens' hot springs.

The women on the other hand, were on the other side, in one of the ladies' hot spring areas, and decided to blend in by pretending to talk to the other ladies about female related items, problems, and day-to-day concerns, mostly concerning the stupidity of the male species. This however isn't the real story.

What was happening near the men's hot springs, that was the important thing, at least to a frizzily white-haired man, with war paint near his eyes and a telescope in his hand. Even from across town, he could see the women's bath perfectly. He was unseen within the bushes, but his chuckles could be heard from behind a bush.

Naruto and Haku immediately had deadpan faces, knowing that they were dealing with yet another perverted soul, just like Kakashi. They quickly dried off, clothed themselves, and snuck behind the white haired pervert. He was clothed in an outfit that gave him away as a ninja of some sort, and he seemed to be of some considerable power, but he wasn't paying any attention.

Haku tried the polite approach. "Ano, sir?"

The 'gentleman' replied in a gruff voice. "Keep away, sonny, I'm doing some field research."

Naruto then took away the telescope from the gentleman's hands and looked in it to see what the gentleman was looking at. "Okaasan and Shizune-sensei's hot spring is over there. Haku-neechan, we have a pervert to pummel."

The perverted 'gentleman' chuckled, grabbed back his telescope and pushed Naruto into a tree within a blink of an eye. "Heh, this should be amusing. A couple of scamps think they're a match for me!"

Haku immediately into action throwing a few needles that the pervert managed to dodge, well, most of them anyway. The gentleman grinned until he found out the arm that was hit refused to move. _'A medic-nin technique? How did a brat like this learn something like that?'_

Naruto dislodged himself from the tree, and was, in short, pissed off to no end. He then performed a simple technique in order to surprise the pervert, and that was to merely slam his foot into the ground, creating a mild tremor and making a small crack grow toward the perverted nin.

The nin jumped away before the tremor hit but was caught slightly in the shockwave and was hurled back further than he expected. He managed to keep his balance and land on his feet. _'The other brat has strength I haven't seen since... wait a minute... he almost looks like... Yondaime? Could this be Arashi's kid? And his strength... it reminds me of...'_

He grumbled and held up his hand. "Hold up, brats, I'd like you to answer something for me."

Haku narrowed his eyes. "Why should we answer you at all, you pervert?"

"Your choice, but I'm posing the question anyway. Do either of you know this woman?" The perverted man took out a picture with three people on it: Orochimaru, Tsunade, and himself.

Haku frowned and Naruto gasped. "Okaasan!"

The white-haired man immediately turned to the blonde-haired boy, and chuckled lightly. "Oi, so you do know Tsunade-hime. I was wondering where the pair of you learned those techniques. It's not everyday that the Toad Sannin, Jiraya, gets to meet students of his fellow teammates."

Haku and Naruto turned to the Sannin in shock. This was Jiraya, one of the three legendary Sannin, the perverted man Naruto overheard about almost four years ago. A man of considerable strength and power.

He was also the man, in Naruto's mind, that tried to have him killed eight years ago. Naruto's face became resolute as he shouted out. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" All of a sudden, forty Naruto clones appeared, all with faces that said that they were prepared to kill. And they all struck at the perverted Sannin.

Haku, remembering the story that Naruto told about overhearing things that night some years ago regarding the Sannin that tried to have Naruto killed, responded in kind with ten Mizu Bunshin, and they in turn all went at the Sannin.

Jiraya was surprised for an instant, he wasn't expecting an attack from Tsunade's students, certainly not attacks that were meant to end his life. He had to look in their eyes for only an instant to know that they were in deadly earnest to kill him. He fought off each of the Bunshin with a surprising degree of skill. However, he was caught off guard as his eyes widened and then rose into the air with a scream as Naruto himself caught him with an attack that poked the Sannin in his ass.

"Ultimate Kinjutsu: 1000 Years of Pain!" This was the 'other' technique on the scroll which Kakashi added at the end as a joke. For some reason the kids took this technique seriously. Jiraya did not find this funny and decided to call in some help, biting his fingers and holding them to the ground.

Haku cried out as he recognized the seals. "Naruto, stop him before he can summon!"

Too late, however, as the Sannin completed his summon. "Kuchiyose no jutsu!" A bipedal toad-man warrior, a little larger than a man with a blade, then leapt out at Naruto with a sweeping slash of his blade.

Naruto countered by sending his remaining Kage Bunshin's to distract the toad-man. The toad that was summoned, being an expert warrior, easily fended off the chuunin-level bunshins. However, he had a hard time against Naruto who had vanished from sight. As the toad looked for the sneaky kid, he noticed a hole in the ground and immediately jumped back. A crashing noise resounded through the ground beneath him and he was struck by a fist covered in chakra, giving it an inhuman level of strength and damage. The toad-man, having been defeated, vanished in a puff of smoke.

Haku on the other hand had his hands filled with battling the Sannin himself. The perverted nin simply smiled as he dodged all of Haku's attacks, including the water dragon that he summoned to strike at him. The nin's response was give Haku a good boot in the behind and watch him sail into the sky, having a good laugh at the kid's expense. Jiraya stopped laughing as more needles hit his legs, paralyzing them. Haku then performed his bloodline limit ability, he turned enough of the hot water into ice and created the demon mirror technique, surrounding Jiraya in a number of mirrors within an igloo formation.

Haku then struck with thousands of needles which the Sannin was having a harder and harder time dodging them. This was a bad situation that was getting worse. As Haku himself leaped from the mirror to deliver the coup de grace, a torrential gale was spinning in the Sannin's remaining mobile hand, controlled by a tremendous amount of chakra.

Naruto, sensing the danger, cried out an alarm which was too little, too late as the attack connected perfectly with his foster brother.

**"RASENGAN!"**

* * *

A/N: Cliffhanger. Yes, it's evil, deal with it. Kyuubi has run off again, this time with Kakashi's book, so now Kakashi has reluctantly agreed to read off the reviews and... eh?

_Kakashi whispers in the ear of the author._

Oh yes, in exchange for the return of his book. Good enough, the fox has had enough fun for one day. All yours, Kakashi-san.

_"Ahem. Thanks for your assistance in this manner, Dark-san. Now for my part of the bargain, reading off the more poignant reviews. We start with our resident Sailor Senshi, Lita of Jupiter. Indeed, Haku was part of the greater plan, but as of the end of this chapter, who knows what will occur next? The author did tell me that there would be some elements of romance in later chapters, but not until after people get back, and I think from what I could get from Dark's sick and twisted mind, expect the unexpected."_

Very, very true, Kakashi-san. Go on.

_"Moving right along, more adulations from mariel4000, gopu, and we have a new reviewer in MELSAMA13. Please don't mention that book-stealing fox. He's probably getting all the pages drenched with either his drool or at the bar with a few dozen hurricanes."_

We have our crack teams working on the fox as we speak.

_"Next we have Blazer6 and his great review on the work, as well as some issues with Sasuke. I'm trying to work on the kid, so Dark, please don't kill him yet? And I think Blazer has a good point with the pair..."_

No comment on that, nor on any hints of pairings until they happen. Expect the unexpected.

_"InfernoDragonz is seemingly confused on the curse, izumi, and x1coma also comment on the curse. Agreeably this is a confusing element of your story."_

This I believe I addressed in this chapter, hopefully well enough.

_"Night-Owl123 returns once more enjoying the tender moment at the end of chapter three broken up by rampant desire to gamble. Tsunade-sama needs another hobby."_

She does. Kicking Jiraya's butt is her other hobby.

_"Odor is desiring to keep the romantic bits light once you get to them. I was hoping for something more along the lines of..."_

Sorry Kakashi, does not allow NC-17 works on their site. Nice try.

_"Alas, these puritanical fools. Anyway, Ramen Fox in a Box seems to have the best insight thus far in realizing that Naruto only hearing part of that conversation was misled into believeing Jiraya was the killer. I think this chapter covered that question well enough."_

And it continues into chapter five.

_"Yes, indeed. Wormkaizer and Hyuga Rain seem to be at odds as to whom the eventual pairing should be."_

I was thinking of a Kakashi-Naruto fic... no, no, I'm kidding. Well, the only thing I WILL relate to is that this is not going to be Yaoi. Other than that, it's everyone's guess, and in this case, it's my own guess as well, though I have a good idea of who it will be.

_"And they call ME sick and perverted. Next, AngelMidori was happy you brought back Haku. You realize you may have lost a fan there..."_

Considering whom the story centers around, and the general premise, what do you think Haku's chances are, hmmm?

_"Ah, good point. Angl and PervertedGoofness also give accolades to your dubious fic. Finally, Karibanu believes that Hinata should remain a tool, and not be a major part of the fic. That's the last one."_

Can't comment on that just yet, it would give too much away. And yes, we finally found Naruto and your book.

_"Yes!!"_

Unfortunately, the fox decided if he couldn't have the book, nobody could... as you can see...

_Kakashi grabs at the destroyed cover, the drool and bite marks on the book as his precious Itcha Itcha Paradise is ruined beyond all hope of repair. This drops the copy ninja to his knees in despair. "Why? It was just an innocent book of perversion! It didn't deserve this fate! Why? Oh the humanity of it! WHY??"_

Calm down there, jeez, get a grip! There's a sale on the book across the street and Jiraya himself is signing... neh?

_The copy ninja vanishes across the street and gets at the head of the line with two volumes, the one that was destroyed, and the newest one._

Parting is such sweet sorrow, and for Kakashi-san, rather brief. Please review and try not to be too mad at me! _The author hides in a corner._


	5. The Rage Within

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
by Darklion74**

* * *

A/N:

An early start to Chapter Five means hopefully it can come out earlier. This is hopefully going to be a longer chapter than previous ones. Kyuubi is back and he just saw the number of reviews so far. We're going to try to revive him in time to go into reviews.

* * *

**Chapter Five  
The Rage Within**

Upon being hit from the Rasengan, time seemed to slow down, as the orb of high level hurricane winds struck squarely in the center of Haku's chest. The ten-year-old shinobi, one trained by three of the finest sensei known to the Hidden Villages, was hurled mercilessly into the air and through one of his own ice mirrors, shattering it into a million pieces. The broken boy landed on the ground seconds later with a sickening thud, motionless upon impact.

_Two young boys look into the scroll provided by Hakate Kakashi just a few days back. It was a complex scroll, but Haku seemed to go through it without any problems whatsoever. "Naruto-kun, let's learn this one next, Kage Bunshin. Are you ready?"_

_Naruto, eager as ever to learn something new, nodded vigorously. "Ready, Haku-neechan!"_

Naruto was stunned speechless. The Sannin who tried to take his life less than a decade ago, just took away one of the things most precious to him, his beloved foster brother. Haku just lain on the ground, his eyes lifeless, his body still and unmoving. No final words, no final goodbyes, just an abrupt end to his life.

_As both of the children took a bit of a rest on a hill overlooking the resort they were staying at, Naruto glanced over at his brother, a surprisingly uneasy tone in his voice. "You're never going to leave me onee-chan, are you?"_

_Not sensing the unease, Haku went into an easy and sincere smile, just as he always did. "I'm not about to abandon my little brother, Naruto-kun."_

The fury refocused in itself, and increased a thousand-fold, he turned his murderous rage to the Sannin, as he began to take on a soft red glow, his face becoming feral, almost, inhuman. Jiraya merely shook his head and stood quietly, his body recovered from the paralysis after the needles were removed.

"I remember the tales of the boy taken from the village, left to die from the attack of a shadow wolf, a _kageurufu_. I was left to believe that boy died, and through that, a terrible curse was lain upon the village. Now I see that boy alive and in front of me. Uzumaki Naruto."

The chakra emanating from Naruto increased as his eyes slowly changed from blue to red. And as his nails enlongated ever so slowly from human fingernails, to lethal claws, brimming with a dark energy all of their own.

_"I began life with no parents, no love, no life. I'm happy I have a family now..."_

_"...a family now..."_

_"...a family..."_

_"Oneechan."_

The Sannin looked at the transformation with a calm countenance. "No good will come of this fight, Naruto-kun. I'm saddened and sorry for the loss of your brother. But this battle will lead to more unnecessary blood, and if you continue, you will regret it for the rest of your life. I am not your enemy, Naruto-kun. I never was. I don't know why you want to kill me..."

Naruto's voice came back, as if it were his own, but an intellect not his own, it also seemed somewhat amplified, with a level of malevolence that was beyond belief. "You tried to kill me seven years ago, when you sent your possessed underling to take me to the forest, and end my life there. Your possession failed, but you nearly succeeded, you nearly had the job done. If that wolf bit me harder in a more vital part of my body, I _would _have died. So sad you were so careless, Jiraya."

_**"That's right, Naruto. He tried to kill us, both of us. He cannot be allowed to live for the crimes committed against us, and for the crime committed against your brother."**_

Jiraya stepped back in shock. This wasn't Naruto's natural voice, and _no_ nine-year-old child could speak with such dark intellect and lucidity within his voice. "I didn't try to kill you... wait... am I speaking to Naruto or am I..."

Naruto chuckled, and it was an amused chuckle of an evil that was sealed nine years ago in his own body. **"You are speaking to me, though at this time, you can refer to me as Naruto, or by my, other moniker, little toad."**

Jiraya paled as his face went from nervous to terrified in an instant.

It was also within that instant that Tsunade entered the scene, with Shizune close by. They had heard the commotion and sped there as fast as they could, but too late to be of any real intervention. Tsunade was somewhat shocked to see Jiraya there, but then her eyes turned to Naruto's semi-transformed state. No sooner had she seen her little blonde boy, her eyes locked onto the broken body of her elder charge, Momochi Haku. Upon that sight she ran past Naruto and Jiraya, her eyes fixed on that horrible sight.

"No. No, it's not true. It's not! Tell me it isn't true! Tell me you're just sleeping, Haku! Tell me! Come on! Wake up! Wake up! Your mother is telling you to wake up! Wake up now! Don't tell me I've lost someone else I love! Don't tell me, that I've lost... a s-son!"

Tsunade collapsed upon the broken body of Haku and wept, shuddering, blocking out everything else from her awareness. She only knew of being here next to her son, and that Haku was nothing but a broken lifeless shell.

Jiraya turned to Naruto, his face furious. "Kyuubi! I know not why you desire vengeance against me, nor why I deserve it. I NEVER sent anyone to try to kill Naruto, no matter what the boy may believe."

Naruto's enhanced voice cracked like a whip and was of a far deeper tone than before. **"LIAR! I heard you, the boy, the fox, whomever you think you speak to, 'I' heard you. We are now one and the same, thanks to your betrayal. And I will enjoy rending the flesh for your bones for this treachery!"**

Naruto vanished in a blink and struck into the side of Jiraya with his demonic chakra enhanced claws, leaving a bad gash into the side of the Toad Sannin. The Sannin was quick to respond with a quick evasive maneuver to avoid a second serious injury. The gash did it's job though, Jiraya was most definitely slowed down, weakened by the slight poison of the demonic chakra.

_'I don't want to do this, but if I need to put Naruto down in order to protect the innocents, then... damn it all to hell!' _Jiraya reopened the cuts on his fingers, performed quick seals then performed the summoning technique once more. This time, it used up almost all of his remaining reserves, leaving him open for a lethal attack. However, what he summoned was of immediate concern to the demoniacally possessed boy.

The toad summoned was colossal: easily thirty feet in height and fifty in length. It's weight was in the scores of tons. He growled at Jiraya in an annoyed fashion**_. "Jiraya! What's the meaning of this summoning? Why did you wake me up?"_**

Jiraya coughed, signifying his weakened state. "Sorry, old friend, but we have a bad situation. You remember Yondaime, don't you? Well, meet his kid, Naruto. He's got a major problem at the moment."

**_"Oh really? Jiraya you can do better than that. And you brat, are you trying to hurt the dummy here? Not that I care, but I can't allow you to kill him. And kid... why do you smell like fox? I HATE that smell with a passion."_**

**"Take a wild guess, you ugly toad. I remember you, and how you annoyed me time and time again. It's time I ended your miserable existence, Gamabunta!"**

The toad croaked angrily, or the best a toad can do in representation of a growl. **_"Kyuubi! You're in that kid? Well I guess I know why I was summoned. I feel sorry for the kid, he's the innocent one in all of this."_**

**"And Jiraya is the murderous one, trying to kill me many years ago, and me along with him!"**

_**"Enough, boy! Enough, damned fox! ENOUGH OF YOUR LIES!"**_

Both demoniacally charged boy and gigantic toad sprang into battle, as their first collision sent a tremendous explosion crashing down on the area.

* * *

As the battle waged in the small resort town, close by to the leaf, two people were looking over the combat with a fair deal of interest. One was a teenager, about fourteen years of age with a straw hat covering his face, and a scarf covering his mouth, painted toenails and a relatively dark outfit. The other was in a similar hat, but if anyone could see his skin color, it was a pale shade of blue, and there were gills on either side of his throat. He carried a gigantic sword on his back which was covered in heavy wrappings. They watched the level of power in the contest with respect, and perhaps the slightest amount of awe.

The blue skinned shark-man broke the silence. "Damn, whomever they are, they're going right at it. Isn't that Gamabunta, Itachi?"

"Hai, Kisame. There's no doubt that the toad boss is in presence, which must only mean that Jiraya is nearby. But the other chakra seems to either match the toad boss, or possibly even surpass it."

"Eh? That _kid_ down there is even stronger than the toad king?"

"Hard to say, but it should be reported as soon as possible. Though we can wait for the end of the contest. I must say I am interested in finding out more about what created this contest, what lies yet unseen, even to the eyes of the Akatsuki."

And silently, from across town, the young boy with the red eyes of the Sharingan watched patiently, hoping to see more fighting and knowing more of what two of the three legendary Sannin were doing there.

* * *

The battle between the frog and the fox-boy raged on as half of the town was destroyed. Tsunade was still stricken with grief over the loss of of Haku, and Shizune was mesmerized by the battle at hand. The sannin's aide simply did not understand why Naruto and Jiraya were fighting one another this fiercely. And what did Kyuubi have to do with any of this?

Shizune remembered when she had to tell Naruto about the curse and what was inside of him, and she remembered it wasn't a pretty picture. And even then, she never had the opportunity tell him everything, something always interrupted.

_"Aunt Shizune, what do you mean that the Leaf Village is cursed?"_

_"When those that were there tried to kill you, the fox cursed everyone through that wolfbite scar on your arm, giving everyone an injury, dependent on how close they were to the incident or how similar they were to you, in this case, age."_

_"Nani?"_

_"The children back in Konoha who are about your age, and the sole survivor who tried to kill you were cursed the worst."_

_"This isn't true! It can't be true! I didn't hurt anyone!"_

_"We know you didn't, but it was the Kyuubi. The demon that was sealed inside of you as an infant."_

_Naruto looked at the spiral mark on his chest, and started to shudder._

_"But Aunt Shizune? Who would have done that? Who would have been so cruel as to seal such a monster inside of a baby."_

_Shizune dreaded this moment worst of all, telling him who ended up cursing him most of all, even for the sake of the village. "The only person who thought you stood a chance against the beast, the Yondaime Hokage, your father."_

_"M-my father? Why? Why did he hate me so much?"_

_"He didn't hate you, Naruto. He loved you, and he wanted to give both the Leaf and you a chance. He gave you a chance to be a hero for being the one to take the Kyuubi forever out of their lifes..."_

_"Until they tried to kill me..."_

_"Yes... until they tried to kill you. In doing so, they weakened the Yondaime's trust and the seal enough for Kyuubi to let out one powerful curse: Kageurufu Arashi noh Kitsune Ryo (Shadow Wolf Wind of the Demon Fox)."_

_Tsunade called out. "Shizune-chan! Naruto-kun! Dinner!"_

_Shizune grunted but sighed as Naruto took the cue to leave quickly, not really wanting to hear anymore. She didn't even get to the part who really tried to kill him._

And she never did, as she witnessed the battle that raged on. _'Wait, I can still tell him, I can still get it out before it gets any worse than it is!"_

"Naruto-kun, it wasn't him, it was..."

An errant blow by Gamabunta's gigantic whip-like tongue struck Shizune in the head, knocking her against the ground with tremendous force.

Naruto's voice cried out, amplified by the Kyuubi. **"Shizune-sensei! THAT DOES IT, fox, NOW YOU DIE!"**

Naruto performed a complex series of seals within a blink of an eye, thirty-two of them in less than one second then combined both his chakra with that of the demon's. ** "Kuchiyose no Kinjutsu: Seimeisatou Youkai - Kyuubi Fuukaku!"**

With this, a grayish phantom appeared with a red shadow, which resembed a Naruto-sized version of Kyuubi. The toad, realizing the power of the style, tried to jump away, but was overtaken by the demonic wraith-like being as it caught him and sank right into him.

Gamabunta convulsed as the poisonous energy from the realm of the dead went into his system and his colossal form began to shudder and shiver. The frog's eyesight was never very good, but his other senses began to dull as his head tipped toward the ground, as he grew more and more tired by the moment, the negative energy inside of him reaching lethal levels.

The toad king's voice was very weak, as he could only whisper in a wheezing voice. **_"J-Ji-Jiraya... I'm sorry. I c-can't stay here... forgive me..." _**With that, the gigantic toad vanished into ninja smoke. Gamabunta was utterly defeated, and Naruto was looking at the exhausted Jiraya, and could literally _taste_ the death of the Toad Sannin on his tongue.

It was a bitter taste as he faltered slightly in his resolve. The Kyuubi sensed this and tried to urge the boy along. **_"What's wrong, Naruto? You have your vengeance in the grasp of your claws! Rend his life from him, and make our revenge complete!"_**

_"This doesn't seem right, Kyuubi. I don't know why. He seemed awfully surprised that we would attack him at all, save for a brief pummeling for his perverted ways. And this death, for some reason it tastes bitter. I don't know why but I see my father in him."_

**_"That may have been the case, boy, but he must pay for the crimes he committed. He must be slain, and slain now, while we have the chance!"_**

_"Yes. Yes, I s-suppose you're right, fox. He did try to kill us, he did kill Haku, he needs to be put to..."_

Something in the corner of Naruto's eye stopped his thoughts in an instant. Kyuubi's mounting voice at vengeful desires was all but silenced, limited to a light buzzing in the back of the boy's subconscious. Kyuubi wondered until he too looked through Naruto's eyes with a bit of shock.

Shizune slowly rose, holding her head as she laid down on the blasted earth, suffering from what appeared to be a moderate concussion, a non-lethal injury. This wasn't however what caught the fox-boy's attention. Momochi Haku, who's body was completely unmoving underneath the grieving form of Tsunade, just twitched his finger. He was still alive!

Naruto and fox wasted no time, and ran over to his foster brother, confusing all involved, especially the wounded Jiraya, and the slowly recovering Shizune. He quickly analyzed the injury and found it would take all of his own chakra and then some, the remaining chakra of Kyuubi.

The fox grumbled a bit at the situation, but then sighed, deep within the imprisoned seal. **"My vengeance is important to me, but this broken body is more important to you. I'll lend you my powers this once. Tsunade should be able to take care of the Toad Sannin from here. Good luck, kid."**

With that, Naruto summoned all of the chakra he could into his hands until he could literally smell them burning from the raw amount of power he held within them, and summoned a massive force of healing energies straight into Haku's broken body. Bones that were shattered beyond repair began to mend, and mend perfectly. Muscles that were torn to shreds were reformed and reinforced as before. Blood that was spilled was cleansed and replaced back into the repaired veins and arteries from within the broken body, which itself was made whole again.

Naruto's hands were partially blackened by the restoration jutsu, reinforced by the demon fox's own chakra. He looked into the slowly opening eyes of his brother, then slowly prodded his foster mother to look. Tsunade gave a firm hug to the son she thought she lost, and wept with joy as Haku smiled wearily. Naruto on the other hand, even in the semi-transformed state he was in, beamed with joy, then fell to the earth, unconscious.

Tsunade gasped as Naruto fell, immediately worried at the condition of the boy. Finding out that he had merely burned his hands and fell to a mild case of chakra depletion, she healed the blonde boy, so that his hands were not only healed, but returned to normal, and the feral state was dispelled. Naruto opened his now blue eyes slowly, exhausted, and unable to move, but alive and relatively well. He tried to speak, but no words came out.

"Shhh... don't try to talk. You need your rest."

Jiraya merely got himself up to a seated position and whistled admiringly. "Damn. That's some kid you raised there, Tsunade. I'm amazed he could..."

Tsunade merely gave a cold look to the Toad Sannin and interrupted. "Jiraya, please explain why you tried to kill my sons, and why I shouldn't tear you limb from limb?"

Jiraya gulped and slowly explained the situation, that the boy was at first just beating him up for being what he was, a pervert, but in more self-flattering terms as far as the Toad Sannin was concerned. He then explained once he identified himself, they tried to kill him. As the story went on, Tsunade was wide-eyed with disbelief. _'Naruto thought that Jiraya tried to kill him? How could he have thought that?'_

It hit her then, he overheard one of the discussions she had with Kakashi, or at least part of it. She never mentioned the name of the Snake Sannin, the one who really tried to have Naruto killed. She looked at the blonde boy with nothing but love in her eyes. "Naruto. My dear dear boy. It appears we were all victims of a huge misunderstanding. I never mentioned the name of the one who truly wanted to have you dead, because I truly cannot stand the very thought of that _snake!_"

Naruto blinked in a confused manner. _'Snake?'_

Jiraya tiredly nodded. "Orochimaru, I could never stand him either, and it seemed he wanted vengeance for not being named the Fourth Hokage after our sensei retired."

Naruto nodded, and blushed lightly, embarrassed that he could have made such a bad mistake. Even the fox within was somewhat flushed, then the rage came back. **"So, it's that damn SNAKE! He fooled the boy... HE DECEIVED ME, HOW DARE HE! I'LL REND THAT SNAKE SCALE FROM SCALE AND SEE HIM BURN FOR TEN THOUSAND YEARS BEFORE I LET HIM DIE, that filthy, ominous, retched..."**

Naruto once again muted out the murderous rants of the fox within him. It was obvious that the seal was somewhat weakened, but he remembered everything, even the forbidden technique that the fox made, though it would be difficult for him to do it alone. Another weapon, but one of ultimate last resort, one to use when all other methods had failed.

Jiraya slowly made it back to his feet, his body sore, but able to walk away. "Well, now that's all settled, I wish everyone well." As he turned to leave, he saw the angered faces of Shizune and Tsunade blocking his path.

"Not yet, pervert. You _did_ after all attack my sons and nearly killed my dear Haku! You have a tab to pay up. And I'm not letting you out of my sight until it is paid up!"

Jiraya sighed, as he was in no condition to fight Shizune, much less a fully-rested Tsunade. He was left with no other choice. "So, what do you intend for me to do?"

"Help teach the boys what you know. Start with the Rasengan."

Jiraya scoffed. "The Rasengan! These kids aren't even _genin_ yet... well... they did a number on me. And they seem rather bright. But you really think they're ready for such an advanced technique?"

Tsunade merely grinned viciously as she hoisted the Toad Sannin in midair with barely an effort. "Make them ready, they're going to need it."

* * *

A/N: 

Good news, Kyuubi is revived and ready for the reviews! The bad news is that he wants a raise in salary. Since when do muses get paid? Just explain the jutsu this chapter.

**"What? I gotta give away MY trade secrets, but you get to keep... fine, fine, just keep that cat away from me! Who knew that little kittens would be so vicious? Anyway, the glorious technique that squashed that retched little froggy this chapter was something of my own design, which seems to once again be stolen by Naruto, little thief. Kuchiyose no Kinjutsu: Seimeisatou Youkai - Kyuubi Fuukaku (Forbidden Summoning Tenchique - Demonic Wraith - Kyuubi Style!). This thirty-two seal technique summons a miniature version of me that once it hits its target, starts to drain the life out of it, until it leaves a dead husk. Gotta love it."**

Yes, lovely, now, onto the reviews.

**"You need someone else to handle these newcomers, still, Blazer6 returns with his hatred of Sasuke intact. Good, someone needs to hate him. Can I be part of the Sasuke-hater club?"**

Don't you hate just about everybody?

**"That's not the point, Dark! Karibanu also made a point of not making Hinata a tool, but reminding you that without the brat, she's not going to have a source of inspiration.**

Yes, and no. He's not there, in body, but in spirit... well, go on.

**"TriAce-Gaara mentioned that you could work on the length of the story. Compared to other tales, your chapters are rather short and skimpy."**

I'm working on it, as this is the longest chapter to date of _pure_ story.

**"Plumwarrior37 seems to like the originality of the fic scoff. I'M THE MUSE, I'm the one that gives him the inspiria... KEEP THAT FELINE MONSTROSITY AWAY FROM ME! He's also worried that you tried to kill Haku."**

Well, I didn't and why are you afraid of Mister Snuggles? He's so soft, purrily and snuggly; ignore the razor sharp teeth and the psychotic tendencies, and he's the perfect pet.

**"Uh-huh. Yeah. Perfect (for a Manson Family Reuinon). Lita of Jupiter again gives a long review praising you for whatever reason, and threatening to put... a WHAT? A PINK LEASH! LET ME AT HER, I'LL..."**

Continue _this_ rant and you'll continue your discussion with _Mr. Snuggles! _You will not be treating one of my best reviewers in such a fashion!

**"EASY, easy. Okay... I'm fine, I'm cool. She continues in agreeing that NaruHina or NaruSaku wouldn't work, nor would Yaoi. She especially enjoyed 10,000 years of pain. I could demonstrate that for her if she would only..."**

_The cat is presented near the face, where the cherubic face of a white cat is replaced with a demonic hiss and three layers of teeth, as well as a pale yellow glow in the cat's eyes._

**"BACK! BACK! The Power of Christ compels you! The Power of... oh who am I kidding? I'm no exorcist, I'm another bloody demon! Peter Kim has some delightfully fine ideas and... hey, stop writing notes! You're supposed to be writing this and not the reviewers! Lynn Lee wants you to be nice to Hinata. MWAHAHAHA! That and Kale Ironfist noted that it's **_**MOMOCHI, not MOMICHI, you blockhead**!**"**_

Okay, okay, fine, it's been corrected in this chapter. There are many other fine reviewers, but Kyuubi is only taking the most detailed ones as he. I can't promise that I'm going to be nice to anyone, but things are to be considered. Aww, look, Mr. Snuggles is playing with the fox, and look he's batting his little paw into the nose of the fox, as the fox slams painfully into...

_The author looks with a morbid fascination as the cat attempts to literally eviscerate the fox, and as the fox is slowly being torn limb from limb. _

Umm, while I try to save the fox from certain death at the hands of my deranged pet, we will close for another day. Keep the reviews coming and I'll try to get the fox to the ICU of Konohagakure as soon as possible!

**"HELP ME!"**

_"REOW! HSSSST!" FSSSSssssssssssssst!_


	6. Lessons from the Toad Sannin

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
by Darklion74**

* * *

A/N: I apologize for the delay in the making of this chapter, but I had a plan for the next few chapters which I had to scrap and redo the chapter from almost the beginning. I hope this chapter meets everyone's desires. I know it's not as long as many would like, but it is one of the longer chapters thus far. 

Disclaimer in Chapter One.

* * *

**Chapter Six  
Lessons from the Toad Sannin**

Uchiha Itachi, former ANBU Captain of the leaf, super-genius of the Uchiha Clan, slayer of the entire Uchiha Clan, pondered what he saw has he let his Sharingan go. Both Sannin who had been at relative odds with one another become reluctant allies. He sensed this could be rather troubling for what he and Kisame were assigned to do.

Kisame was twitching slightly, as the shark-man never liked to wait for fresh meat smiled lightly as Itachi's Sharingan receded. "So, what is it, Itachi? Who won?"

"Nobody one, but that kid may have taken out Gamabunta for a _very_ long time. I couldn't even attempt to copy that jutsu that he used. I never knew he had a bloodline limit. No, it's not even that. From what it looked like, nobody with only _human_ chakra could even attempt that jutsu."

Kisame blinked. "Damn! That's a big problem!"

Itachi nodded. "It could be a problem, yes, but we cannot strike now, not against two Sannin, nor against this unknown factor no matter how weakened they may be. This will bear watching to see how we can benefit from this. For now, let's withdraw."

In as quick as a blink both Akatsuki members vanished.

* * *

Jiraya sighed as he glanced at the young blonde in front of him, sleeping in his bed. Such an innocent face, such an innocent, period. Untainted except for a bit of the sarcasm given him by Tsunade, something he would have to change sometime. A boy needs to enjoy his childhood, whatever is left of it. Even he, the great Toad Sannin, enjoyed his childhood, as perilous as the life of a shinobi youth was. His battle began with the leaf, and hopefully he can have a normal life back within the leaf. 

Jiraya had made his silent vow. These boys needed a somewhat normal life, as much as he determined what a normal life was. He had to pass down the legacy he gave to the fourth, and what the fourth gave to the promising Hakate Kakashi. A legacy of genius, a legacy of greatness, a legacy of skill...

A legacy of legendary supreme perversion! No set of worthy "T" nor "A" ever escaped his watchful sight! This was something he HAD to teach these boys if they were EVER to grow up and be MEN someday! Tsunade would be sorry she _ever _forced him to train her boys.

Tsunade watched the perverted nin with a hint of suspicion, fearing that he would eventually try to corrupt her innocent shinobi angels, and probably with very good reason. For now he couldn't teach either of them all that much as they both slept quietly in their beds. She looked after Haku, who was no longer in danger of dying, but was still extremely tired and needed his rest desperately. The poor boy had been through enough, especially with a crushing Rasengan to his solar plexus.

Hopefully Naruto could learn it. Haku had tremendous chakra control, but even with that, he may not have had enough raw chakra to do more than one rasengan during a battle and remain conscious. Naruto, though not having quite as much control as Haku, being a bit better than the average ninja due to his previous training and experience, had vast amounts of chakra, both natural and the reserves of the Kyuubi.

Perhaps the perverted sennin could teach Haku a few other techniques. He could assist Haku with summoning techniques. Who knows, maybe he could summon Gamabunta. She doubted that the frog would _ever _agree to help Naruto after the boy nearly killed the old beast. Perhaps there would be something else for Naruto to summon.

That however was a lower priority on her list. What was first was seeing her sons safe and sound. The second was making it to the next casino with enough money to last awhile. Still, she had to consider what was happening, especially with Orochimaru. That damned monster nearly ruined all of them, and though the boys started the fight through a mistake, an almost tragic error, it turned out for the best, and she would HOLD Jiraya to his word... for better or worse.

Shizune though pondered the young boys and Jiraya himself. Haku was a gentle loving boy, who didn't deserve the harsh life of a Shinobi. His skill though was undeniable and the boy was a certified genius with an Advanced Bloodline in Water Manipulation. Strong, dedicated, and perhaps one of the most brilliant fighters she had ever known. He took all of what she had to teach and even _improved_ on some of the techniques at such a young age.

Naruto had already gone through so much suffering and heartache, as a little boy, and as a shinobi-in-training, he had learned more than most chuunin and jounin. And in addition, his potential strength was unfathomable, even well beyond that of his legendary father. He did not possess the raw intellect of his foster brother, and could be rather stubborn, even irritable at times, but he was exceptionally clever and innovative as well.

As she considered Jiraya, he was everything that Tsunade had pegged him as: very powerful, very intelligent and determined, as well as the biggest pervert she had _ever_ met_. _She would need to watch the Toad Sannin as well. Those two boys were so impressionable.

* * *

The lessons began promptly in the morning, underneath tutelage of the Toad Sannin. Naruto was fully refreshed, and Haku, though somewhat tired, was also in good condition. Jiraya looked over at the dark haired child. _'Smart look in his eye, and a fair deal of chakra, but not enough for most of my... well, I can begin summoning jutsus with him. I'd do the same with Naruto, but I fear he permanently ruined any chance of summoning frogs, considering how badly he injured the frog boss. But he does... maybe... yes...'_

"Very well scamps, let's get started. The first thing we'll be doing is testing the amount of chakra we have. We'll be working with this!"

Haku and Naruto watched eagerly until Jiraya took out a simple water balloon. The kids were a bit crestfallen, and very disappointed at the old grump of a man. Haku looked up at the Toad Sannin. "Jiraya-sensei, what exactly are we supposed to do with a water balloon?"

Haku's response was a water balloon in the face as Jiraya merely grabbed another. Naruto laughed at the misfortune of his soaking older brother until he found himself being soaked as well. "Now that I have your _full _attention I want to see how strong the pair of you are. Let's see if you can burst this balloon with only your chakra."

Haku blinked, thinking this might be a worthwhile exercise after all. Naruto still looked rather doubtful, as he took the balloon and looked at his sensei. Jiraya grinned. "Oh, want a demonstration, then here!"

Jiraya manipulated the chakra in his hand until the balloon literally burst into pieces, soaking the hapless pair once more. The pair of soaked kids blinked, thinking this might not be such a bad idea after all. Haku saw the spin in multiple directions immediately and attempted to do so himself. He tried to mimic the maneuver, but he just couldn't manipulate it enough in order to burst the balloon. The balloon stretched more and more, but then just had a bit of a leak then it emptied.

"I... I don't get it, Jiraya-sama, how did you..."

Naruto on the other hand, saw what Haku was trying to do. Mimicking him, Naruto easily performed the spinning chakra maneuver and the balloon exploded with a massive force, letting out sharp sprays of mist and wind.

"Ummm... oops. I think I overdid it."

Haku and Jiraya merely looked at Naruto with utter shock.

_'How was Naruto-ototo able to do this? I have greater control than him, and I'm the smarter of us two. Don't tell me that he only needed to mimic me in order to do that step? Is he that strong?'_

_'The blonde is smarter than he looks. He may have mimicked his brother, but he noticed things quickly and is very observant, even though he seems a bit aloof at times. Guess I can proceed to teach him the Rasengan.'_

"Haku-kun, what I'd like you to do is try to learn using this."

Haku was then given a scroll which had a number of written names upon it. One of them was clearly that of "Jiraya." But the surname surprised the boy and he went to ask about it but was stopped before he could ask. "What I'd like you to do is the following, cut your finger with your teeth and sign your name next to it. This is a summoning scroll. Naruto, I'll be with you in just a moment."

Haku nodded and cut his index finger with his teeth, then proceeded to sign the Frog Summoning Scroll with his finger. As he did so, Jiraya took the scroll and rolled it up, noticing that there was blood dripping from the page. Jiraya opened it only to find the name of "Momochi Haku" dripping off of the page and onto the ground. The blood would not stick!

Jiraya was absolutely puzzled. If Haku could not summon frogs, nor the Rasengan, he was at a loss at what the boy could do outside of his bloodline which was manipulation of water. The Toad Sannin was very poor when it came to water techniques, and really could not help the boy that way. He looked sadly in the boy's eyes, expecting to see a dejected look, but instead he met a hopeful one.

"I've never been good with wind manipulation. Jiraya-sensei, you go ahead and teach Rasengan to Naruto-kun. Before you go, sensei, could you do me a favor though and leave a couple dozen of those water balloons?"

Naruto blinked. _'Rasengan? The technique that nearly killed onii-san? Jiraya-sensei is teaching me that?' _

Jiraya blinked, surprised that the boy was fine in knowing his own weaknesses, but was willing to try something else, though what it was escaped the Sannin. "Suit yourself, kid. I don't know what you had in mind, but be careful."

Haku nodded and took one of the water balloons, just juggling the water and swirling it within it slowly. He slowly added chakra as Naruto and Jiraya went off to train with the Rasengan. Jiraya and Naruto returned three hours later, as Naruto was exhausted but elated. Jiraya on the other hand was absolutely stunned.

_'It took Yondaime three years to develop that technique, and his son picks it up in a little more than three hours. What the heck am I dealing with here?'_

What Haku was doing seemed to surprised the pair, as Haku was concentrating on one of the balloons intently, but the balloon seemed to glow intensely, as the young dark-haired boy seemed to slam it into a tree, but before it burst into a mass of flying water, a near sphere shape was punched into the tree. Haku dropped to the ground, tired, but happy, as he addressed his brother and new teacher.

"Since I can't do the rasengan, I thought, maybe I could do something similar, based on it, but using water instead of wind. I haven't mastered it yet... but it's close. I just need to concentrate on it a bit more."

Jiraya's thoughts were a moray_. "I underestimated both of these kids, boy did I EVER underestimate them. Tsunade and Shizune did a marvelous job in training them. Naruto may only have above average chakra control, but considering his case and that seal, it's a tremendous accomplishment, and his chakra level is tremendous, even without the Kyuubi's additional reserves. Haku's control is unparalleled, and his genius in turning the rasengan into a water based weapon, using his own advanced bloodline to assist him. His chakra level for such a young man is considerable, a far cry from Naruto's, but his cleverness uses all of his strengths despite his weaknesses."_

He then decided the best thing to do was to let the boys train by themselves for a bit, to perfect their new techniques, while he had a few rounds of drinks, and round up a few women.

* * *

Naruto went into bed, he decided to drift away from any thoughts as he marveled at what he learned today: the very technique his father developed, the Rasengan. He was able to do it in one hand as well. Still, his thoughts turned on the battle yesterday, and how as a transformed monster, he was able to do such a deadly kinjutsu due to Kyuubi's knowledge. He found he couldn't sleep, and for some unknown reason, he decided to write down his thoughts on a scroll. As he painted the kana, his eyes seemed to take on a glazed look, as if it were possessed. The letters written took on a life of all their own, as the scroll seemed to gleam with great energies. As he went to sign his name, something stopped him. 

**_"Not that way, boy. That place needs a signature in blood, not ink."_**

Naruto looked around, his eyes frantic to find the voice. Could it be... he decided to speak internally with the fox.

_"Hey, furball! Was that you that just spoke to me? Fox? Why aren't you."_

_**"You're not in a place he can reach you, kid. Not yet, anyways. He's trying to get in touch with you but won't by the time I get done with you."**_

Naruto suddenly remembered the tone of the growl that accompanied that voice. It was a growl that he had feared for a very long time, as the shadows grew until they were all around him. As he mentally began to try to hide, he remembered... he wasn't that defenseless little boy anymore, but a powerful shinobi, able to tear apart the beast that he feared, the one that bit him and attacked so long ago, the _kageurufu._

_"Show yourself, wolf. I know you're hiding somewhere."_

**_"I lie in the shadows, boy, and where we are, the shadows are everywhere. Thus am I omnipresent, and and get at you from anywhere at anytime. Still, I didn't come for a meal, but I came for a deal."_**

_"What do you mean, a deal?"_

A dark chuckle and a growl emanated from the **_"As you saw earlier, Haku was unable to sign the Contract of Frog Summoning. He has another destiny in mind for him. You, on the other hand..."_**

It hit Naruto like a thunderbolt. _"How can I be sure that I can trust you?"_

**_"You survived my first encounter. Few ever do, and those that do are more than worthy of summoning me. Besides, you got it in good with Kyuubi, and those of my clan are among his strongest allies. You may refer to me as Kuro. Sign my scroll, boy, and gain the allegiance of myself and my clan! You could do much worse for yourself."_**

Naruto was doubtful, but then for some reason, decided to cut his finger with his teeth and sign his name in blood. After that was done, a brilliant line shown in. It was the sun.

Morning had come and Naruto finally woke up. He looked blearily as he thought that he had some strange dream. He then looked as his thumb had a dried cut on it. As he looked on his nightstand, he saw a scroll. He read the kana upon it and nearly fainted in shock. The kana was in his _own _writing! _'Shadow Wolf Clan Summoning Contract.'_

The signature in blood was his own name, Uzumaki Naruto. He rolled up the scroll and went to see Shizune, there was a lot he had to talk about with his Aunt, as he knew his mother would still be asleep by now, and would not be waking up anytime soon. He made a knock on the door.

"Oi, Shizune-sensei?"

Shizune blinked and groaned, having barely gotten up herself, as her muffled voice carried through the door. "Can't this wait, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto, still a bit frantic replied almost tersely. "No, Aunt Shizune, it really can't! Please, I need to talk to you!"

The door opened to reveal a half awake Shizune, still suffering from the after effects of the concussion. "What is so import..."

She moment she saw the scroll in his hand and read the line, she ushered him in quickly. "Where did you get _that_ scroll? What's wrong?"

Naruto, still shivering a bit opened the scroll to show her everything on it. "I... I don't know... but that wolf, the one you saved me from, it... it came to me last night in my dreams. At least... I... I think it did."

Shizune read the kana on the scroll and was stunned to find out that everything was in Naruto's sketchy writing, as well as the young boy's signature in the summoning contract. If she was the least bit sleepy, she was almost an insomniac by now. Naruto explained the dream, and what the wolf had offered.

"By Kami, this wolf actually agreed to serve you. And he got his entire clan to help you. I... I don't know how much to tell you, except on how to do a summoning jutsu. I know the motions, the seals, but I can't summon anything myself, little one."

"You mean it?"

Shizune smiled and ruffled the hair of the boy. "No sweat, kid. Never let it be said that Uzumaki Shizune ever..."

Naruto opened his eyes wide. "Uzumaki??"

Shizune covered her mouth, sensing that her brain was not _quite_ as awake as it should have been. Naruto looked at his aunt, open-mouthed. "You're an Uzumaki, too?"

Shizune sighed and nodded, her short hair still disheveled by the motions of sleep, and sorely needing of a washing in a brook or a pool of warm water. "Yes, and I'm sorry I never told you earlier. But you and I are not all that closely related. I think Tsunade-hime may have a good chance of being a closer relation than I. Last I looked at the family chart, almost twenty years ago, your mother and I were seventh, maybe ninth cousins. Still, you've been my beloved little nephew for many years, so why should it be any different, now?"

Naruto merely beamed and impulsively gave a hug to Shizune. Shizune grinned and returned the embrace. "Well, you have training to do today, so get going."

Naruto released the hug with a huge smile on his face. "Hai!"

* * *

The remaining two years had passed quietly, as not only did Naruto master the Rasengan to an even higher degree, but also mastered summoning, as well as other medic-nin and strengthening techniques. Haku had developed a new technique as well, the _Mizuken_, a technique that could match the Rasengan and used his own advanced bloodline technique of water manipulation, and had his own summoning. 

But this was hardly a day for celebration, for they were finally at the gates of Konoha. Naruto was eleven, and Haku had turned twelve. The guards at the village looked at the visas signed by the Sandaime hokage himself, and with a bit of shock, escorted the boys within the village, out of the sight of the three shinobi hidden in the trees.

Jiraya broke the silence. "Well, there they go. I'm sure they'll do fine, since they had me as a... Tsunade-san? Tears? I thought a shinobi wasn't supposed to cry after..."

A fist to the face later, Jiraya flew off into the sky, as Tsunade continued to weep silently.

Shizune, with a few tears in her own eyes, but a smile on her face turned to Tsunade. "They didn't want to go, but they have dreams of their own. Haku told you his, didn't he, Tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade nodded. "To protect those who need it most of all, and to stay close with his little brother. Naruto told you his though, yes? I never had the chance to hear it."

Shizune's tearful face went from sorrowful to proud, as proud as she ever was. "To become the Hokage..."

Tsunade gasped. She never suspected that from all that had happened, that Naruto would have EVER wanted that, until Shizune finished her comment.

"...and continue his father's noble example."

Jiraya, who had recently returned from his short and painful flight, heard Shizune's final comment. Tsunade was reduced to open sobbing, her sons had left for greater things. She was not normally a very emotional woman, but she had an exception for her adopted sons. The Toad Sannin, at the bottom of the tree, had a bit of a tear in his own eye. "Yondaime, you have a hell of a kid. Watch over him for us, okay?"

With that, none of them being ready to return to the Leaf themselves, the three shinobi left without a trace.

* * *

A/N: This was a difficult chapter to write, and I'm not entirely pleased at the execution, still the story must go on. Now, it seems that Kyuubi has looked at ALL of the reviews and has decided to answer the top five he felt were most interesting, and yes, there is yet another new jutsu introduced this chapter. And yes, Kyuubi is fine, he just had to undergo four different surgeries in order to save his miserable carcass. Kyuubi, please explain it. 

**"I feel the love in your statement, fleshbag. Though not demonstrated fully, the technique is only usable by Haku due to his advanced bloodline, that of the _Mizuken_ (Water Sphere). It is simply put, a water-based version of the ever-popular _Rasengan _(Sprial Gun). Since Haku did not have the raw chakra, and has poor control over wind-based attacks to perform the Rasengan, he simply took the idea of the technique with what he had. Smart kid, eh?"**

Nice, nice, and now, the five reviews Kyuubi will address this chapter. To those whom he does not directly respond to, thank you for your reviews anyway, both critical and supporting! Flames are not welcomed. If you're going to flame, Kyuubi will eat you.

**"In that we agree, for if you flame _him, _you flame _me, _and that simply cannot go unpunished. First is an reviewing favorite, Blazer6. I never liked the kid and am happy to be a member of the Sasuke Hater's Club. Not sure if Darkis going to be kind or cruel to that brat yet. So we'll just need to stay tuned. Oh and I think we'll see other effects of Jiraya's 'training' next chapter. Heh heh heh."**

Oh dear, I almost forgot about that. Be scared, be very, very scared.

**"Another favorite, Lita of Jupiter is back. Actually, the kitty's name is Mr. Snuggles, but he should be known as Psycho Creature from the Deepest Bowels of Hell. Hopefully Dark can start to bring more of Shizune's character into the fic, as he did this chapter, but the stars are going to be Naruto and Haku for the most part. And I was wondering why I was having nightmares in the hospital, I was smelling CAT the whole time. Please, please, please, leave your kitties at home. I think dark isn't revealing all of what Jiraya taught this chapter, but he's going to reveal more in future chapters, at least, he BETTER."**

_The Author starts to go towards the door that leads to Mr. Snuggles._

**"EASY, easy. A third reviewing favorite, Gelionlegends, notes on MY technique and learning it at different levels and stages. Dark I KNOW you have something planned for that."**

Yeah, I do, in fact. Much I intentionally leave hidden to be discovered when the time comes.

**"A new reviewer, SaLLy11 also responds on an earlier chapter. Tsunade IS a legend after all, so she would be rather well known. And it is possible that he could tell that there is some sort of resemblance, since Tsunade does notice within the manga, that there is a great deal of similarities between Naruto and her departed younger brother, both in attitude and in physical resemblance."**

Good to see a new convert, I mean, I new reviewer.

**"Riiiight. The last reviewer for this chapter is GeshronTyler and the guy makes a number of good points, some of which Dark put into practice in THIS chapter. Bad author! Stop using the reviewers ideas to write your fic! This is an excellent review, I must admit, however, I am dubious on Sakura. Well... come to think of it."**

You have an idea on how to use the pink-haired one?

_The demon fox whispers in the ear of the author. _Pair her up with... EWWWW! No! Not Jiraya! BAD FOX! But... hmmm... possibilities otherwhise, though the leather outfit will have to go.

_The fox whines._

Hey, live with it! Thanks for everyone's reviews this chapter, over 100 reviews in five chapters! Thanks for the continued interest! Please leave your reviews for this chapter too!


	7. Shining Stars Hidden Shadows

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
by Darklion74**

* * *

A/N: Okay, the number of reviews each chapter keeps increasing, and Kyuubi has said he'll respond to five reviews every chapter and no more. As long as Mr. Snuggles doesn't try to eviscerate him (as he just about did so after chapter five), the fox will be cooperative, if somewhat argumentative. To reiterate one point to my newest readers, there will be NO yaoi pairings, as this is a non-yaoi fic (this author is non-yaoi, not anti-yaoi, please understand this).

Now, on with the pain... I mean the show!

* * *

**Chapter Seven  
Shining Stars - Hidden Shadows**

The Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi, looked carefully at the visas that were presented before him and at the two boys standing before his desk. Naruto had adopted an outfit that was a near replica of the Hokage's own student, Jiraya, except where the Toad Sannin went for red with a yellow circle for a vest, and a green fatigue uniform, Naruto went for a black uniform, and a gold vest with the symbol standing of _seizansha (survivor), _while his physique was not quite lithe, it was not really muscled either, seeing as though he was only eleven years of age.Haku on the other hand took on a teal vest with a white border, and a green fatigue uniform. The dark haired boy stood just under a head taller than his younger brother, with a very lithe and graceful physique, that made Naruto's somewhat average appearance almost look muscular.

"Naruto, words cannot express how sorry I am that you had to come back to us this way, especially with what you went through, but now is not the time for words."

Naruto was trying his hardest not to say a word, though words of anger were biting to go off of his tongue, and the desire to tear the throat out of the old geezer for even mentioning that point. Though he tried to remain in control, his fist clenched and unclenched unconsciously. A welcoming hand on his shoulder from Haku, calmed the boy down.

Sarutobi then looked towards the young missing-nin. "You on the other hand may have been a problem, if you weren't already declared dead by the Mizukage. He and I concluded a deal, just a few weeks ago, saying that Momochi Haku, a distant relative of the missing-nin, Momochi Zabuza, was raised in secret among the Leaf Nin, and is among that village. This was _not _an inexpensive deal, I hope you understand."

Haku, taken somewhat aback from the harshness of the Hokage's tone, merely nodded, understanding the implications. Naruto didn't quite understand it, but felt some sort of veiled threat toward his brother, and immediately frowned.

"Now, now, don't worry, Naruto, everything is taken care of. In fact, the curse seems to have lifted now that you have returned, though I am not certain as to why."

Naruto felt a buzzing in his ear which turned into deep words, almost a mantra. **_"Revenge against the Leaf, Revenge against the Leaf..."_**

Naruto silently replied to the fox. _"Revenge against Orochimaru, the snake must perish. Let's hold judgment on the Leaf until they prove their current guilt or innocence. Much may have changed in nine years."_

The trapped fox merely snorted and growled. **_"I doubt they have, but you're the turnkey and I'm the inmate. Agreed, for now."_**

Sarutobi felt Naruto having something internal happening to him, but if it was a struggle or something else, he could not quite tell. Nevertheless, the young blonde did not look care free but someone hardened by harsh experiences, even though he looked to not even have a scratch on him. All of the true injuries he sustained, except for that bite, were internal.

Haku on the other hand seemed rather quiet and contemplative, very similar to Orochimaru, but the young boy had someone to look after and care for. In the Sandaime's mind, with luck, the boy would not turn out like his gifted but disappointing student did.

Through all of the reports, these boys were all but ready to be immediately put into the rank of _chuunin_, and in Haku's case, perhaps even _jounin_, but they needed a rapport in the town, and to learn alongside other children their age. So it was decided they would attend the academy.

"Now, it is important you don't show off too many of your abilities while in the academy. Using chuunin to jounin level abilities will be frowned on and will give away too many secrets, such as who taught you and showing your true strength. You're going to need to do a little acting, pretending to be weaker than you really are. Your mission right now is to truly blend in, and become leaf-nin, by working alongside and developing bonds with others around your own age."

This caught the boys by surprise, as they were prepared to go all out in the school, and it disappointed them since they were robbed of the opportunity to show off. Though he did say in the academy, so they could still train themselves in secret to their fullest extent, but would just need to be careful. The same thought crossed through their minds. _'Why do adults always find ways to complicate the simplest of things?'_

"In any case, you begin your academy training in the morning. You can use those uniforms if you like. As this is the latter half of the year, you will be going through exams in only a few months. I'll explain to the instructor that you've had some training beforehand and should be ready for the Genin Exams." The Hokage then gave a bit of a map with an "X" upon it. "This is where you'll be staying for the time being, and it's already been furnished. Since it's getting late, you both should head off, you'll need to be in class by eight o'clock. Dismissed."

Both boy simply bowed their heads and vanished from the office. The next one to come in was Umino Iruka, now the lead chuunin instructor for the Academy. Sandaime smiled lightly as he started to explain who the new students were. Iruka had never heard of one of them, but the other made him nearly pass out.

* * *

It was their first day in the academy classroom and they looked around at the number of students, from the gifted to the hopeless. Both Haku and Naruto simply smiled at one another as if they had a secret others had to find out, which obviously they had, many in fact. They waited in the hall until they were called in by Umino Iruka. "Now boys, kindly introduce yourselves."

Haku decided to come in first, as some of the girls began to look at him very inquisitively, his bishonen style grace immediately catching their eye. "My name is Momochi Haku. It's a pleasure to meet everyone."

The calling by nearly every girl in the classroom that they had a seat next to them that wasn't being used, even emptying those seats of their prior occupants in order to try to get him to sit down next to them. Iruka merely coughed lightly in his throat, seeking to end the argument. "Momochi-kun, you can sit down next to Hyuuga Neji, over there."

The girls immediately moaned and asked how Iruka-sensei could be so cruel and uncaring. But Iruka merely continued unfettered. "Now settle down, we have one more student to introduce, who incidentally is the foster brother of our newest target of crazed fandom."

Hope immediately surged back to most of the girls.

When the black clad figure in a golden vest finally did enter, the look of hope turned to shock, and not just the girls, the guys were also quite shocked. They didn't quite recognize the blonde-haired boy, but for an instant, the same visage went through almost everyone's head: A black wolf, a young boy, a snarl, a lunge, and the visage of blood. The sole person who didn't look with Naruto with shock was a young red-haired girl, maybe six years of age who looked around at those around her as if they went nuts.

With a bit of a grin, Naruto bowed. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet everyone, again."

The look of shock intensified as the rumored boy who was thought to have died in a wolf attack almost nine years ago came back, not only alive, but looking quite strong in fact. They could not overlook the fact that Naruto wore a very similar outfit to that of one of the legendary Sannin, Jiraya. They also looked at the kana on his vest, _seizansha. _Iruka merely coughed once more and pointed to a seat.

"Please take a seat next to Ikegata Tenten, Uzumaki-kun, and... welcome home."

Naruto paused for a moment, then looked at Iruka with a stunned surprise for a moment or two. The boy could probably beat the chuunin into the ground as if he were nothing, but the dark feelings he had inside of him began to wane slightly, as he beamed at the chuunin-instructor and took the seat next to Tenten. His neighbor began to think she was now seated next to a certified weirdo, if not an absolute psycho. He did give a polite nod and a smile, then prepared to listen to the lessons for the day.

He and Haku tried _very hard_ not to fall asleep, as these lessons were already taught to them by Tsunade, Shizune and Jiraya. Haku somehow remained awake, Naruto was not quite as fortunate. Iruka was not happy that his two newest students were yawning in class, and enraged that Naruto fell asleep. He broke the chalk in his hand and threw it at Naruto at full force, intending to wake him up.

"Naruto, wake... up?"

Naruto had caught the thrown piece of chalk with ease, as he woke up, bleary eyed, but semi-alert. It seemed he caught the extremely fast projectile on sheer instinct alone. He blinked then yawned. "G-gomen, sensei. I didn't get much sleep last night."

The class was apparently surprised, as well as Iruka at the sudden adeptness of the dumb looking blonde. A slight cough from Haku, and a quick, sharp warning glance conveyed enough of a message to Naruto. Iruka sighed and continued with the lesson, asking Naruto if he knew the answer to the question.

Naruto yawned and blurted out "four."

Iruka was about to chastise Naruto when he took another look at the problem, and redid the calculations in his mind. Well, the kid was right. Maybe he can pay attention and be asleep at the same time. He turned his attention to the yawning Haku. "To the other sleepy brother, maybe you can do this problem in the book. Do number fifteen on the page indicated here."

Haku nodded and rose, going to the board and looked at the problem. His half-asleep mind did the problem in nothing flat. "May I use your chalk, sensei?"

Iruka nodded and Haku proceeded. "According to the laws of gravity and the parabolic trajectory given, a shuriken would need to be chakra enhanced to attain the speeds listed. In addition, an unusually high amount of control of chakra would be needed..."

Tenten, a confused look on her face turned to Naruto in a whispering tone. "Uzumaki-san, do you have any idea of what your brother is doing?"

Naruto, his eyebrow twitching, tersely replied in a whisper. "I have no clue what that _baka _of a brother of mine is doing."

Iruka, equally confused at the problem, decided to close the book and gulped. "Ah... Momochi-kun, I apologize, that problem was from one of... my... textbooks. Please do problem fifteen in _this _book."

The entire class was in total shock, as the sensation that he himself made an unintentional goof crawled uneasily into Haku, as he turned around to see the twitching eyebrow of his brother which literally screamed _'Pot calling Kettle black, come in, Pot calling Kettle black, come in, anta-baka!'_

Haku uneasily chuckled, putting a hand behind his head and easily did the fifteenth problem on the board. The class still watched in sort of a shocked awe at the genius student. He then returned to a somewhat surprised Hyuuga Neji. _'Something about this newcomer, and with Naruto. I better keep an eye on both of them.'_

The little girl in the red-hair however, remaining unnoticed by both teacher and class, was fast asleep, apparently not impressed at all.

* * *

As the foster brothers left the academy for the day, a few of the academy students looked at the pair strangely, though the dark-haired boy still got puppy-dog looks from girls. Haku and Naruto discovered it will be quite the challenge to keep their abilities secret. The blonde turned to his elder brother. 

"This isn't going to be easy after all. We already goofed twice in the same day, and I don't mean nodding off."

Haku sighed and nodded. "Yeah, and worse yet, we barely made it through one class. The genin exams are about a month away. I wonder how we can..."

"..do what?"

The pair froze and turned around to see a silver-haired masked shinobi in the uniform of a leaf jounin. The ninja had his _hitai-ate_ over his left eye as he looked with his uncovered eye at the boys with a somewhat bored expression. Naruto remembered the voice.

"Kakashi-san?"

The jounin nodded. "I'm glad you remembered me, Naruto-kun. You got taller, as did you, Haku-kun."

Naruto frowned. "There has to be some reason why a jounin would be looking for a couple of academy students in broad daylight."

Haku had a deadpan face. "Especially for such a perverted one such as yourself, Kakashi-san."

Hakate Kakashi coughed lightly. "Well it's simply that I'm to keep an eye on you two to see that you don't cause too much mischief around town. That's the official line. For now, follow me, we need to talk."

Haku and Naruto looked at each other and sighed. They sensed that no good was to come of this.

* * *

This was a room within the Jounin-only section of the Hokage's building, in Hakate Kakashi's private office. Only the most elite of the Jounin had their own offices, and Kakashi was one of ten who did. The boys who followed were looked at by the other Jounin there with a hint of suspicion, though those looks died quickly when they saw Kakashi escort them. 

"Alright kids, as you know this is the final month of the academy year, as Genin exams will be coming soon. I have no doubt that you'll pass, with utter ease. The reason why I called you here is that in addition to your academy duties, you'll be taking on another mission, a B-ranked mission, assigned directly by the Hokage himself."

The kids, who were bored to sleep today, suddenly awakened. Finally, an opportunity to prove themselves!

"This mission would normally given to high ranking chuunin, if not jounin. I will be your direct contact to the Hokage, as the mission is right here in Konoha. Here is your assignment."

The boys looked over the scroll carefully and blinked in shock, then they looked at each other, then at Kakashi. This "B" ranked mission borderlined with the prerequisites of an "A" ranked mission. The mission was straightforward, but very difficult.

_"There is a traitor among the chunnins, but the true identity is unknown. The only other clue that is known is that the traitor is among the chuunin instructors of the Academy. Skilled shinobi are recommended, implants within the academy as instructors or students unlikely but ideal for this assignment. Skilled investigation and stealth is a must._

_Mission Rank B - Difficulty rating borders on Rank A." _

Haku rubbed his chin. "Within the academy... how long has this been known, Kakashi-san?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Not long ago at all, in fact this information was very recent and disturbing. We don't know what the traitor intends to do, only that there is one. Too many hints were left behind, but the person suspected is skilled in covering his tracks, which would likely mean one of chuunin rank. A jounin would likely leave no hints behind at all. It was still possible that it was a jounin until the clues led to the academy. It has to be a chuunin, since jounin do not teach at the academy."

Naruto commented on the mission "Implants within the academy as instructors or... students. This is why we were selected, and why we were told to keep a low profile. Damn! I wish we knew this sooner, Kakashi-san."

Kakashi nodded. "Technically I was already supposed to have told you last night, but I was caught up with this little kitten who wouldn't get down from the tree..."

Nerves began to twitch from both of the young shinobi, as they both detected the obvious lie.

Kakashi immediately recovered. "In any case, just go with what you've already done, even if by mistake. There's no doubting that you are a genius ninja, Haku, so go with it, don't try to hide it now. Naruto, you may be somewhat skilled in normal academics, but don't overdo it. Still, show a small surprise of natural skill once or twice, even a surprise of ineptness once in awhile. It'll keep up your appearance. However, keep your high level jutsu's a secret. Save for one, the final exams. Iruka always has his students perform Bunshins. Give him a shock or two for me." Kakashi said the last part with a wink.

Haku and Naruto looked at each other then nodded. It seemed like a good plan.

* * *

The next couple of weeks were rather difficult for Haku, as he had to find more and more creative ways to avoid the mobs of crazed prepubescent fangirls. He started to used Mizu Bunshin in order to mislead the crowds so he could get home, training and to class. Naruto had a slightly easier time acting talented but somewhat inattentive. He had a number of skills but kept himself appearing unskilled in bunshins. 

Naruto began to get a few admirers himself for his tireless effort and stamina, even in the worst of situations and questions, even while trying to hide his intellect with some success. Among them, Ikegata Tenten, and begrudgingly, even Hyuuga Neji thought that there was something more to the blonde ninja than his outfit. Naruto did however allow one of his natural talents to shine... his inhuman senses of smell, hearing and eyesight that could manifest at any point and time in order to sense where danger may be coming from without seeing it.

Even with blending in, and none of the Chuunin Instructors suspecting a thing, the pair had a great deal of difficulty in tracking down the traitor at all. No clues came up, at all, and none of the teachers could be eliminated as a possibility, there wasn't enough evidence. Apparently the traitor was waiting for a particular point and time.

As Naruto was taking in the sights around town, a tap on the shoulder caught his attention. He turned but found nobody. Another tap on the shoulder came and again, nobody. He chuckled a bit and called out. "Okay, Tenten-san. I know it's you."

Tenten "hmphed" as she jumped out of the tree and took at a look at the young blonde. She looked at him with a bit of playful suspicion. "So, Naruto, where are you heading off to so quickly?"

Naruto grinned and whispered in her ear. "It's... a... secret." Then he winked conspiriatorially, one of Jiraya's more charming effects on his outlook.

Tenten pouted and grunted. "Come on, Naruto, tell me! You've been such a mystery for such a goofball in the classroom. At times you seem like you actually have a brain in your head and at other times you shoot that theory to Hell. So what is it? Do you really want to become a shinobi or not?"

Naruto merely laughed. _'If she only knew.'_ "What if I told you I was already one?"

Tenten smirked. "I'd say you were delusional, Uzumaki-kun."

It was Naruto's turn to stick out his tongue. "So what? What if I'm just goofing around right now, just as you'd said. Okay, fine, to be honest I'm just off to spar with Haku-niisan."

Tenten raised an eyebrow then continued her attack. "So you can fight... I guess. Trying to get some of the genius by having it beaten into you?"

Naruto, having enough of the verbal bantering, looked saddened for a moment, but hid it and continued on with a smile. _'Tenten-san, if you only knew the hell I had to go through to get to this point, even after that damn wolf.' _"Tenten-san, it was nice talking to you, really, I'm just running real late now! Ja ne!"

Tenten blinked then started to run after him. "Nani? Chotto-matte! Come back here, Naruto! We haven't finished yet! I mean where did you come from and where..."

Tenten blinked as she turned a corner, and the blonde shinobi had vanished. "...did you go?"

Something was up with Naruto, and moreso with his brother, Haku. Too many things didn't make sense with Ikegata Tenten and she was determined to find out more.

* * *

As she continued her search, Ikegata Tenten heard what sounded like an explosion and decided to investigate. As she went toward the sound, two more explosions came forth, and she increased her speed. As she went into the copse of a forest, she saw Naruto and Haku using various forms of Taijutsu on each other. 

What she did not realize, is that she was detected about a hundred meters away, and at a signal from Naruto, they had gone from their jounin level techniques, down to their upper genin-level taijustu, and moved away from the part of the forest that was decimated by uses of the rasengan and mizuken.

Tenten then saw a fairly impressive display of taijutsu, not quite at the level of Rock Lee, but getting fairly close to it. She knew that Naruto had a bit of skill when it came to Taijutsu, but she didn't expect that Haku had a similar level of expertise. Naruto then tried to perform a bunshin, which he intentionally botched, leaving a dead and poorly made copy of himself on the ground which didn't fool Haku for a moment as he formed a _mizu ryu no jutsu_ which caught the blonde straight in the chest and drove him into a tree, knocking him silly.

Haku tsked a bit. "You need to keep your guard up, otooto-kun, as well as really work on your bunshins. I mean really, they need a whole lot of work."

Naruto grunted and grinned as he stood on his feet, woozy but otherwise barely phased by that attack. "You need to work on your stanima as well, anii-san. You're winded already after only a few minutes. You'd need to do better than that if you want to be a genin."

Tenten looked at Naruto in shock. He had taken the genius attack by his brother, which would have knocked her out light a light, and just stood back up like almost nothing had happened. Haku showed incredible skill. She had to make her presence known, and as she stepped into the clearing, a smoke bomb exploded near the two boys. Tenten quickly retreated to higher ground, watching from the trees.

What she found was surprising, it was a grey-haired chunnin instructor, holding an unconscious Naruto, and Haku was knocked to the ground. The chuunin was Mizuki-sensei, Iruka-sensei's assistant in the class!

"Haku-kun. I have your brother with me. If you want to see him alive again. Do exactly as I say."

Haku looked up and growled as he saw his younger brother Naruto being taken by one of the last people he ever suspected, the gentle and kind assistant to Umino Iruka. Tenten however was frozen in place. She knew she was no match for a Chuunin, but what almost frightened her more was the ice in Haku's voice.

"What do you want?"

Mizuki-sensei merely chuckled. "Simple. There's a forbidden scroll in the Hokage's office. While this poor fool has no chance at all in stealing it without being caught, you being the genius ninja that you are could infiltrate the building and take it with ease. This is the kana to look for on the scroll. You can't possibly miss it."

As Mizuki drew the scroll Haku's scowl, became a low chuckle... a very low and menacing chuckle. Mizuki raised an eyebrow. "Something about this amuses you?"

"It was on old memory, Mizuki-sensei. About five or six years ago in fact. You see my brother and I had read up on something really interesting. The item which we read was lent to us, then returned when we had finished. I had almost forgotten about it. But it had a couple of interesting techniques in it."

Mizuki had narrowed his eyes. "Is this speech worth your brother's life?"

Haku had a condescending grin on his face. Unseen in the trees, Tenten had the thought that the dark-haired genius had finally lost his mind. "Well, not my life. But it's definitely worth _yours._ You see, Naruto and I already read that scroll and mastered what we could from it. Including what you're holding, _a kage bunshin!_"

Mizuki gasped as the bunshin gave a lightning fast kick to his gut, knocking the hapless chuunin to the ground, while the real Naruto came out with four kage bunshins, as each of them began to pummel the hapless chuunin senseless. Then after the bunshin were defeated, Naruto leaped up and over his brother who had begun a lightning fast charge with a swirling sphere of water in his hand.

_"Mizuken!!"_

The sphere of water and chakra in his hand literally slammed into the chest of the chuunin, knocking him back into one of the trees, making a huge crack in it, and rendering the traitorous teacher unconscious.

The pair then heard the sound of a retreating shinobi, Tenten. The boys nodded to each other as Haku took the prone form of Mizuki over his shoulders and went off to the Hokage's office, Naruto went off and cut off Tenten's retreat.

She screamed as she prepared her family's specialty, weapon mastery and invisible strings. "Stay back! I'm warning you!"

Naruto sighed and merely sat on the tree trunk laying back against it, as if he didn't have a care in the world. "It's okay Tenten, we were assigned to this. This was something that needed to be done"

Tenten screamed her voice getting more and more frantic. "Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP! Don't lie to me! What are you and Haku? You're no normal academy students! That attack he did, it almost looked like the legendary _Rasengan!_ Only the legendary Sannin Jiraya and the Yondaime Hokage knew that attack! And those hits you did, they weren't ordinary punches, you could have killed Mizuki-sensei with them!"

Naruto sighed and stood up. "Calm down! Panicking is not going to help. You're right on one thing, we are no ordinary academy students. The truth is we were trained for several years before we came to Konoha, by several different sensei. You may have a good guess as to whom one of them is."

This was almost too much for Tenten to comprehend. Not only was this blonde genin, who looked like he could barely pass the genin exam, stronger than she could ever believe, it sounded like he was trained by one of the Sannin.

"Jiraya?"

Naruto nodded. "Haku and I are foster brothers, we were raised by Tsunade-kaasan herself."

Tenten went into a state of awe. In front of her was a disciple of her idol. This blonde goofball had the skills of at least two of the greatest nin to ever come out of the Leaf Village. Noticing a bad scratch on her leg, Naruto simply summoned a small haze of chakra and used it to heal the scratch. She looked in a sort of a dazed wonder.

"There, that should be better. Do you feel any pain, Tenten-san? Ummm... Tenten-san? Are you there? Ummm... what's that look for?"

Tenten was looking at Naruto with quite a bit of adoration, as a blush suddenly crept on her face. Realizing what she was doing, she gasped and looked away. "Nothing! Nothing at all, you're just imagining things!"

Naruto merely nodded. "Uh-huh... right. We'd better get back soon."

Tenten nodded and the two Shinobi sped back to the village. It was turning out to be an interesting situation after all. _'Now, how to make sure she keeps things secret?'_

* * *

A/N: Well... longest chapter so far. And Kyuubi is having a hard time picking five reviews to go over. A lot of good reviews to choose from, thirty-six for the last chapter alone. Simply amazing since it's only my second fic. Now, let's go to Kyuubi and the reviews! Please make sure you don't tick off the cat, furball.

**"Make sure I don't tick off Mr. Psycho Cat from Hell? Just keep him chained up and we'll all be much happier. A brief side note to those rooting for the cat, I HATE YOU ALL! Alamandorious will be our first review to go over, being a new one to the fic. Yeah, the title wasn't inspired (the muse was drunk that night), but we acknowledge your appreciation of the writing, though we appreciate raw meat, preferably alive..."**

Stop slobbering and keep looking over the reviews.

**"Another new reviewer, theDragonBard, will be the second. Considering that Haku helped Naruto against Jiraya and Gamabunta, the frog has a _long _memory and does not forgive easily. I've been authorized by Dark to say that Kakashi will NOT be their sensei since they will be, as you can see, graduating along with Tenten, Neji and Rock Lee, all of whom graduated a year before Naruto, et al, during the manga series. The sensei for Haku and Naruto will be a surprise."**

Yep. I'm ALL for surprises.

**"Blazer6, my fellow member of the Benevolent Brotherhood of Sasuke Haters, Chapter 42, again commits the sin of trying to give too many ideas to the author. I see him again taking notes. Dark! Stop taking ideas from the reviewers. You're supposed to write it, I'm supposed to be the inspiration... Kami help us both."**

_The author pouts as he puts away the notebook._

**"The fourth review spot belongs to Lita of Jupiter, once more. Still not much of the effects from Jiraya yet, but a little hint here and there. Still, the author thought it better to see how the boys would do on a mission. He'll try to get Tsunade and Shizune more later on in the story."**

_The author merely nods, feeling a bit tired for some reason._

**"The last belongs once more to Gelionlegends. Kuro _did _realize that yours truly was in Naruto's body. My poor friend doesn't know that the kid and I don't like each other all that much. Still, he couldn't get a better summon at that time. Sasuke is not in this class, but in the class back from Naruto, Neji, Tenten, et al. No, I'm not a pedo, but I do happen to have a weakness for the weaker shade of red. If only she were older... Grrrrrrrrrrrr."**

That's enough whining, Kyuubi. You'll have to wait until she becomes of age... and if you ever get parole. That's it for now! Please review! The next chapter may have a slight delay as my mother is scheduled for surgery tomorrow. I'll try to get it in as soon as possible. Thanks for reading!


	8. Who is my Superior?

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
Darklion74**

* * *

A/N: Yeow! Over forty-reviews in this chapter, and some of the critical reviews are pretty good. In looking over a few of the overall reviews here, there have been a few who may not have understood that the last chapter had taken place one year before the manga, as Naruto and Haku have returned earlier. Sasuke, Sakura, Hinata, et al were in the class before Neji, Rock Lee, Tenten, Naruto and Haku in this fic.

As for eventual pairings... you will have to wait and see.

* * *

**Chapter Eight  
Who is My Superior??**

Umino Iruka had a bit of a pressing problem this year, since all of his genin students had passed. He was pleased when he saw Uzumaki Naruto actually struggle but create three viable bunshins, though it looked like it tired him out. It was good to him that Naruto, being a somewhat bright individual had a chance at being a shinobi, especially as he struggled during the month he was brought into the graduating class of the academy. A ninja with little ability, but one with great potential, at least that was Iruka's opinion based on what he had seen.

Haku, on the other hand, had stunned the class by creating five mizu bunshin as if it were nothing, and was given the honorary rank of class salutatorian, just being Hyuuga Neji, since he wasn't there for the entire year. Iruka felt that Naruto's foster brother was a godsend to the leaf, getting an otherwise mist-nin type of style to add to the arsenal of Konohagakure. If Iruka only knew he saw a little less than a _fifth_ of the nin's current ability.

Iruka had no idea that the boys were technically already genins on the rolls of the Leaf, and _elite _genins at that, having earned no command rank but completing a very high class mission even before they were officially granted the rank of genin by passing the exams, and possibly may be called on to do high class missions aside from the ones their teams would do.

Still he had the duty of trying to set up teams and he was given one instruction by the Hokage at this point in creating the teams, something that was without precedent in any chuunin instructor's tenure. Regardless, as a chuunin, he wasn't about to cross the Hokage. Especially with the story a little less than a month back, that a chuunin instructor was incarcerated, as well as severely beaten up by a pair of hidden rank shinobi, probably ANBU, but he wasn't certain of the details. All Iruka knew is that the instructor was his assistant, Mizuki, and was disappointed that Mizuki would do something just to gain power.

The instruction was to make sure Haku and Naruto were not on the same team, not yet in any case. An odd instruction if he ever found one since he felt the two nin balanced each other out perfectly with one of average ability. Still, while odd, it was hardly insurmountable; he just had to shuffle things around. Teams were made of nin of high ability, average, and low.

He chuckled, as he knew _exactly_ where to place the two. He also chuckled at the fact that the real exam was about to begin.

* * *

Class started the following morning in mostly the same way, since most of the students from the previous class graduated. Hyuuga Neji was already there an hour or so early, considering the peace of the classroom when nobody was there a fitting sanctuary for his private thoughts and meditation. Haku also came in fairly early, but usually followed very closely by a female mob trying to find a way to date the enigmatic youngster. In truth, while he liked most of them, he didn't really care to start dating right now, as he had too much on his mind. Naruto was surprisingly not the last one in today, as Tenten came in just behind the blonde.

Tenten for the past month had been determined to find out more about the blonde dummy and his genius foster brother. She had found out that they were not ordinary academy students, but even in the past month, she had little time to find out more since she did have to study for the genin exams, which she had passed.

Iruka came in and with a bit of a bang on the desk quieted everyone down. "OI! Quiet down you brats! Well, I suppose I should say congratulations on graduating, but your real challenge begins now as you have attained the first real rank of the shinobi. Each of you will be placed on a team of three, which is balanced by ability. After I have announced the teams, your jounin sensei will be introduced one by one."

Iruka then picked up the final team sheet he had created last night, as the class was getting anxious. Even Naruto and Haku were nervous, forgetting that they could have found out the information any one of ten different ways. Iruka started to call out the names, and the cheers and groans had begun.

"Team Four: Rock Lee..."

The green suited kid with the bowl haircut, fuzzy eyebrows, strange eyes and a dazzling smile jumped up in excitement with an enthusiastic cheer.

"PIPE DOWN, Lee! Next is... ummm... _(sigh)_ Umino Haruka!"

The red-haired kid, barely six years of age, jumped up and down with even more excitement than Lee, saying that she was going to be the best in the world, as her hair was braided back to avoid it going into her eyes.

"Ahem! Sit down, squirt! Lastly, Momochi Haku!"

Naruto stood up in shock, as Haku himself was shocked and somewhat crestfallen. The brothers who had done so much together were being separated into different teams. Both ninja sighed sadly then sat down, knowing that this was an inconvenience, but not a farewell. The female side of the class was shocked, and angered that the 'kid' of all people got to be with _their _Haku. They were quietly starting their plans on how to do away with their annoying former classmate.

Upon the completion of the naming of team four, the door opened, and a voice issued dramatically from the doorway. "Ha Ha! I have heard my calling and have come to answer it, to teach three shining stars to be the best that they can be, if not far, far better, for I am the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha..."

Then a man in a large green suit, with the same haircut as Rock Lee, the same bushy eyebrows, but fairly normal eyes came in with the flourish of the kaiten, the heavenly spin and a theatrical bow. "...Maito Gai!"

The entire class blinked at the entrance of the green-clad jounin. Rock Lee already had stars in his eyes, as he felt that this HAD to be his sensei. The attraction of student to teacher, as a son would love a father was already felt.

Momochi Haku had made the calculations and merely banged his head on the desk, and shook his head pitiably. It was without a doubt that he was stuck with THIS lout as a jounin-sensei, and he was not certainly happy about it.

"Kuso!"

The female mob became compassionate, and tried to comfort their distressed idol of crazed fandom, forgetting their competitive streak against one another.

As Gai lit up his radiant smile, a smile that could blind a room with the brightness of his teeth alone, he felt a small tug at his pants and looked down to see little Haruka with her _hitai-ate _of the leaf on there, her face in a small frown. "And what do we have here? A little child who wants to play at being a ninja... isn't that cute! But you realize that you should not be trying to impersonate a genin after..."

While Gai was speaking, he was also patting Haruka's head, not quite noticing that the girl was getting angrier by the second, or that her eyes were beginning to glow.

Iruka tried to interject. "Ummm... Maito-san, you were supposed to come in after I finished the list..."

Gai merely waved Iruka off. "I know the technicalities, Iruka-kun, but nothing should impede the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha from getting to know his students. I see that there's quite an attractive young man there, just waiting to be taught the secrets of fighting from the greatest jounin in all of the Leaf! And I see another of my students, strangely distressed, but being comforted by friend. Fear not! For I will teach you to be a shining star of a shinobi!"

Rock Lee was pleased beyond measure at Gai's words. Haku had turned from distressed to suicidal giving a look toward his brother that said only one thing: _'SAVE ME!'_

Naruto looked back with an easy look and a smile then pointed at Haruka, as he began to duck under his desk.

Haku looked incredulous until he saw the gleaming glow of fiery chakra emanating from the six-year old prodigy. He gulped, having seen this before and ducked under his desk, taking cover. The girls thought this was an invitation until they felt the heat of the chakra from where they were, then noticed the angry girl with the braid, and they too ducked under their desks, suddenly fearful for their lives, as they screamed in terror.

The terrified screams caught the attention of the rest of the class, as they too screamed and ducked under their desks, wondering when the nightmare would be over.

Gai looked on with befuddlement as he continued to pat the head of Haruka, not knowing that the sheer level of chakra that the little girl was emanating was slowly burning his hand. Iruka gulped and said one last thing before ducking behind his desk.

"Gai-sensei, Kami have mercy on your soul!"

Gai was even more puzzled then looked at the little fireball he was petting and smiled, not knowing he was looking death straight in the eye. "AH! I recognize you now, Haruka-chan! I didn't know you were in this class, you've grown so much in such a short time! How wonderful that... ummm... Haruka?"

Gai got the message a little too late as Haruka unleashed her strongest jutsu. "_Kasainami no Toukai!_"

A tremendous wave of fire struck the hapless jounin into the chalkboard, not only burning him, but also starting to crush his bones. A few more seconds and the jounin would be dead. Haku had a bit of hope in him, but it was dashed when Iruka came out with the one word that would change everything.

"Cookie?"

Haruka immediately stopped her fiery rampage and ran to her elder cousin with a smile on her face. "COOKIE!" She scarfed down the sugar cookie with a smile and a giggle, as the mention of sugary confections always calmed down the flame-haired little girl. As she bounced up and down with delight, crumbs on her chin.

Haku looked up from the desk as Gai fell from the chalkboard and onto the unforgiving tiled floor. His hopes were dashed as Gai started to breathe normally, albeit unconscious.

Naruto merely chuckled a bit at the whole thing, earning a baleful glare from his elder foster brother. Iruka, having made a copy of the list that was destroyed by his cousin's infantile outburst began to read off of that and started to list off a few more teams, then getting to just about the last one.

"Team Nine: Ikegata Tenten..."

Tenten, who was staring blankly at the destroyed desk, chalkboard and wall, finally focused on Iruka-sensei.

"...Hyuuga Neji..."

Both Neji and Tenten groaned, as neither really liked the other, as Tenten acted too much like a girl and not a shinobi for Neji's likes, and Neji acted like a stuck up prick according to Tenten.

"...and Uzumaki Naruto!"

Naruto blinked, as he was going to be paired with both the girl who would not leave him alone and the valedictorian of the class, the one who always watched him with suspicion and distrust. He began to envy Haku a little bit, since at least his brother's team was going to be easier for the genius to manage, than the one that Naruto found himself in.

This time the window opened and another jounin made a startling entrance. This time a cloak exploded into a sign that introduced her as a jounin sensei. This person had a mischievous grin and a smart look to her eyes. Her _hitai-ate_ was on her head, and a tan overcoat over her uniform. Iruka merely sighed and put his head on the desk again, wondering if the other jounin were going to be as problematic as these two are.

"So, I hear I have a few bright students, eh? These names look familiar, Hyuuga, Ikegata, and... what?"

She looked up to find a face she had not seen for nine years, a face she thought that belonged to a corpse she could never forget. Her eyes widened momentarily before her trained shinobi instincts controlled the level of her surprise.

Tenten watched the strange ninja make her entrance then turned to her blonde-haired teammate only to see him stare with shock, and perhaps even a little fear. The jounin and her new genin student locked a gaze of shocked terror for one painful second, before she regained her composure, but he kept the look for an additional second before he recovered.

The jounin gave a smile then just gave a few words, ending with a wink. "Team nine, meet at the edge of the town park, six o'clock sharp tomorrow morning. Don't be late!" With that, she vanished.

Iruka quietly finished the list as the class was suitably subdued after the last entrances of both jounin. He indicated to team four and team nine that they were dismissed until tomorrow, but urged the remaining students to wait until their sensei arrived. As Naruto and Tenten left, she tapped him on the shoulder. Naruto nervously looked back at his now new teammate.

"Naruto? Did you meet our new sensei before?"

Naruto blinked, remembering the face, but not sure if it was really _her_, the one that tried to kill him so many years ago. He had a very uneasy look on his face, and his normal bravado was strangely absent. "I'm not sure... maybe when I was really young, but I can't remember."

Naruto then looked off resolutely in the distance as he began to walk toward his house. Tenten raised a hand as if to touch Naruto on the shoulder, trying to tell him that it was okay, that she was there for him if he needed anything, but she held back, not sure how he would react, and merely gave a pained look to the street. Naruto then looked back and saw the pained look.

"Nani, Tenten-san? What's wrong?"

Tenten gulped and chuckled nervously, a slight blush on her cheeks. "Oh! Nothing! Just... ummm... nervous about tomorrow I guess."

Naruto's enhanced senses detected while that in itself was mostly true, it wasn't the true answer to his question. Then again, Tenten was always a lousy liar, so it didn't take enhanced senses to detect this. But they then separated and then waved their goodbyes. They had become friends over the past month, but nothing more than that, even with Tenten's fascination with Naruto's past remaining.

* * *

Umino Iruka had quietly returned to his office, sighing, rejoicing inwardly that finally, he had a small vacation coming to him at the end of the academic year. But as he opened the door for his office, he heard quiet bouts of crying, mostly quick breaths, sniffling and the occasional whine. He turned and expected to find a failed student that he would have to console, but instead found out that it was the same voice that cried the same way nine years ago after finding out that Naruto was supposedly killed.

It was the quiet crying and tears of the blonde genin's new sensei, Mitarashi Anko. As she looked up to see who it was, her crying became louder and she immediately went over to cry into the shirt of her kouhai, as the mental anguish of nine years began to pour out. It would not be healed immediately, but it healed slowly over time yet now, she was in the position of being the sensei of the kid she tried to kill as a toddler so long ago.

To Anko, it was going to be a living hell to look into the face of that sweet innocent boy day in and day out.

Yet she also saw he was no longer the innocent little boy, he had grown in ways others had not seen. She knew he was holding back, on purpose, but not sure as to why. She also knew that what she would give them tomorrow would be like unlike anything she ever gave before. The road to redemption would have to wait, forever if need be, for their mettle needed to be tested to see if they could survive as genin...

...to see if they could ever possibly survive _him._

* * *

Naruto had an uneasy sleep as he tossed and turned in bed. Disjointed images, of a wall, trees, snakes, foxes, wolves... of kunai, shuriken, needles... of happy faces, saddened ones, ones he misses, and the faces of those wanting the boy dead. As the surreal experience continued, the face of Mitarashi Anko appeared as she was today, and the face of the woman, torn between killing him and letting him go, and both faces, one younger and one older... were both the same. 

Naruto awoke with a start, as he saw that it was almost six o'clock, as his memories went into a bit of a whirl as he got dressed, poured hot water onto his ramen, ate then got going. His mind was still reeling a bit when something from within him growled as he sped off toward the meeting place.

**"Calm down, brat. I know this woman who is to be your _jounin_ superior was only a tool of the damn snake, but it doesn't make it any easier. One thing I do remember is that seal and her scent. She was taught by the snake, that's for certain, and more likely than not, developed some of his talents."**

Naruto kept a straight face as he spoke inwardly with the fox. _"Taught by the snake, you say, furball? So she was Orochimaru's student... Jiraya and Okaasan never said too much about him except that he was very dangerous and the last member of their team under the Hokage, a long time ago. Say, why are you being so helpful after being silent for so long?"_

**"Not by choice, kid, but really by necessity. If it were up to me I'd find a way to keep control of you, and find a way to have my vengeance on these creeps. If she's anything like that snake, her test is going to be anything but normal. It'll probably be beyond anything you ever face and will force you to close a few weaknesses in your own technique."**

_"My weaknesses? What do you mean, I thought Okaasan and Jiraya took care of those."_

**"Many of them, yes. I won't give away everything but I will give this advice: believe nothing that you see, and even less of what you hear. That's it, kid. Don't get killed."**

With that, the growling voice within went silent as it left Naruto to ponder those words as he met up with everyone, even the distant look of his _jounin _superior, Mitarashi Anko. Without looking back at anyone, she nodded. "Welcome to your first mission, Team Nine. Before we go on, I'd like to know a little bit about each of you, your likes, dislikes, dreams, and fears."

Tenten, while a bit tired from being unable to sleep much the previous night gave an incredulous look to her new sensei. "If you don't mind, sensei, I think we should know a bit more about you as well."

Neji, while keeping quiet and distant just nodded and Naruto leaned against the tree, apparently staring off into space, the words of the fox still bouncing off in his head.

Anko turned around with a bit of a glare at Tenten, but nodded, as she didn't like to talk about herself all that much at all, before settling with a fierce smile. "Fine, my name is Mitarashi Anko. Like all of you, I have my own dreams, and my own fears. What I like and dislike will become apparent as time goes along. Now, you, with the meatballs on your head, lets hear about you first."

Tenten bristled inwardly at the insult by the _jounin._ "Very well, Anko-sensei. My name is Ikegata Tenten. I like showing how strong a woman can be, and people who are honest about themselves. I dislike anyone saying otherwise about women, as well as people insulting my hairstyle. My dream is to be as strong as the legendary Sannin, Tsunade."

Anko wasn't quite expecting that response, but kept her smile. _'I thought she would have been a bit more air-headed. Guess she does have some things straight. May not help her though.'_

She then turned to Neji. "Okay, now you, Hyuuga."

Neji looked neutrally upon the strange _jounin._ "My name is Hyuuga Neji. What I like, dislike and what I fear are none of your business, _jounin._ My dream however is to remove the shackles placed upon the branch families by the main family of the Hyuuga clan."

Anko merely smirked in response. _'A kid with a tough act. Though I gotta admit, with the proper use of the Byakugan, he might be able to back it up.'_

Anko paused for a moment then began to tap her foot. "Anytime, blondie."

Naruto glanced over at Anko with a curious look. "I thought you knew me, already, seeing as though we already met... considering you were one of the shinobi who tried to kill me nine years ago. But then you never took the time to get to know _me._ Only on what you thought I was."

Anko was taken aback inwardly, but kept a neutral face otherwise, yet the following words he spoke would stuck with her during her entire life as the glared at her with fierce and angered passion in his voice.

"Who I am is Uzumaki Naruto, the one whom the Villagers of the Leaf tried to _murder_ when I was only two years old, the son of the Yondaime Hokage. My likes and dislikes will become apparent as time goes on. My dream is to become the Hokage, so that I may continue on my father's noble work. My fear is what would happen if someone like your sensei ever tried to control the leaf... and I will make sure that never happens."

Anko's facade of being indifferent broke slightly as her eyebrows shifted. She then closed her eyes and nodded. _'Nicely put, kid. Whoever raised you did a damn good job. If I could ever undo the evil done to you... I would in a heartbeat. But in order to mold you, I need to perform even more evil on you. I hope you can forgive me for this, someday.'_

Anko then lifted her head and gave a devious smile. "Very well. Your first mission today is item recovery."

Neji grunted. "What do you mean item recovery? We did a number of those in the academy."

Tenten nodded fervently. "That's right! What type of mission is this?"

Naruto just remained quiet, as the words of the fox were becoming a bit more clear. "There's something more to this mission than just recovery, there has to be."

Anko grinned. "Better and better, kid, but I'm not going to give away too much, except for this. This is the same mission being given to everyone, just in different ways. The failure rate is 66%, and those who fail, go back to the academy."

Tenten widened her eyes in shock and screamed out "WHAT!" Neji and Naruto looked at each other and sighed, both of them expecting something like this.

Anko then smiled a malicious grin. "But yours is an easy mission, at least, I think it will be. There's a small golden watch in the forest just behind me. At six thirty, the mission begins. From that time, you have until eight o'clock to return the watch to me, and you must all return. If anyone is left in the forest by the time eight o'clock strikes, or if the watch is still there, _you all fail. _That's it, kids, mission starts in three minutes, so get ready."

With that, Anko vanished in a puff of smoke. As the three kids looked at each other incredulously, none of them were certain what to expect. But one of two things were certain, either this was going to be very easy, or unfathomably hard.

Tenten hoped for the former.

Naruto and Neji expected the latter.

* * *

Well kids, sorry for the wait, but it took awhile to make this chapter with all the chaos that is going on. However, the Genin Exam from Hell will begin soon! I was thinking of putting it into this chapter, but I feel I kept everyone waiting long enough, and it may give me time to create a far more detailed examination than I may have originally planned. Kyuubi however has run afoul of Mr. Snuggles and is thus unable to answer reviews this week, but I thank everyone for reviewing, as I was not expecting this many reviews! 

I hate cutting this short, but unfortunately, I'm currently looking for employment and that is taking a bit of my time, so I just don't have the energy at this point. I hope everyone understands and I hope Kyuubi is well enough to discuss reviews with everyone next chapter. Please review and stay stuned for the Genin Exam from Hell!


	9. Genin Exam from Hell

**Strength of Fist and Heart  
by Darklion74**

* * *

A/N: Okay, hopefully we can get a few reviews from the past two chapters, Kyuubi will again choose the best five, as I am behind him and will NOT let him get away this time, even if he does get mauled by my precious little kitten. I have seen a few concerns that say Naruto and Haku are a bit too powerful, and a concern about little Haruka being a Mary Sue. Naruto and Haku are considerably more powerful than in the series, but even they will have their limits. Haruka is by no means a Mary Sue, as you will see in the following chapters. She does have a weakness, a very big one at that. Again, just for everyone's recollection, Naruto and Haku returned to graduate from the academy _one year_ before the start of the manga/anime series.

* * *

**Chapter Nine  
Genin Exam from Hell**

"Ummm... guys, weren't we just here a few minutes ago?"

Naruto and Neji held back for a moment as they scanned their surroundings, as Tenten shouted out at them. Of the ninety minutes that Team Nine had for the exam, fifteen had passed. They didn't experience anything overly dangerous, except if someone slipped off of the tree trunks by accident. The other problem was that the copse of trees they were searching in could have been easily covered twice over in the time already lapsed.

What did happen in the past fifteen minutes was that they seemed to pass a particular rock in the copse four times in a row. The rock itself wasn't very descriptive other than it was a small boulder shaped different than any other rock in the forest, and also that it was next to the only sakura tree in the forest. Naruto sniffed at the air while Neji activated his Byakugan.

The blonde genin grunted and shook his head. "Strange, I don't smell anything out of place."

The pale eyed genius looked around and shook his head. "Even I don't see anything with my Byakugan. This doesn't seem right. Something's wrong and I just can't put my finger on it."

Tenten sighed and shook her head. "It's like we're trapped in some sort of surreal nightmare or something of the sort. We can't move without coming back here and we can't get out! What do we know about our crazy sensei anyway?"

Neji shook his head. Naruto rubbed his chin. "My experience with Anko wasn't a pleasant one but that was some years ago, and only one time. I did however hear a little bit about her sensei, the Snake Sannin, Orochimaru."

Neji blinked, canceling his Byakugan as he did so, and looked at the blonde genin in shock. "Anko-sensei's master was the traitor, Orochimaru?"

Naruto nodded as he rubbed his chin, as his black vest shone in the early day sun. "Uh-huh. They never told me much about him, except that he was very dangerous, and only a little about about his style. Decent in taijutsu, but it seemed much stronger due to his amazing ninjutsu and genjutsu. A snake style of... wait..."

Naruto sniffed again, and took a stronger whiff this time. "I didn't catch this before, but I smell the hint of a snake in the air. This... this has to be genjutsu, an illusion!"

Neji activated his Byakugan once more as Tenten stood back, trying to look around herself. Neji evaluated the area then turned to Naruto. "Where did that smell come from, Naruto-san?" As he looked at Naruto, he couldn't help giving out a gasp. He saw what amounted to be an enormous, if not inhuman amount of raw chakra, and the hint of something else in his chakra system, though he could not be sure as to what.

_'What the devil is this? What is Naruto? This is NOT real, and it has to be part of the illusion. It has to be, isn't it? It... just can't be real. He can't be stronger than... me... can he?'_

Naruto, not really noticing Neji's response, trained his senses to find the smell. "Over there... and... in midair, a little higher than tree level. Very strange."

Neji, collecting himself from the shock of an unexpected surprised from his teammate, looked in the direction Naruto pointed and then upward. He was right, something _was _there. Almost indistinct, but it was a thread of chakra. The thread seemed to be connected to a number of different areas around the woods. That thread seemed to be the nexus of a complex network.

"That must be it. This is a combination of genjutsu and ninjutsu! Very complex, but I only see the single strand. If I break it, we'll be free of this place!"

Naruto watched Neji jump into the air, the Hyuuga's hand covered in a veil of chakra in the fighting form of the Jyuuken. He felt a tingle go down his spine as something was wrong, even with this. _'Genjutsu can be dispelled, though not easily, depending on the level of genjutsu of the students. Our team is generally weak in genjutsu. My own genjutsu is average at best but... wait... believe little in what we see and less of what we hear... don't believe our senses! Oh no!'_

"Neji-san, stop! Don't break the thread; it's a trap!"

The warning went up too little, too late, as Neji severed the chakra thread with a gentle slap of his hand. As the thread went pop, other threads became visible and as the entire area became enshrouded in a field of darkness.

* * *

Anko witnessed the dark cloud enveloping the copse and sighed, shaking her head as her illusion took on a whole new life of it's own. This was a technique she developed on her own, without the help of her hells-be-damned sensei, and when triggered, is probably one of the most insidious and powerful techniques, a combination of genjutsu and ninjutsu. It had taken her years to develop, but once she did, she was not only hailed as a brilliant ANBU Captain during her earlier years, as well as a brilliant teacher of students. 

Of the years she had been a jounin, only _one team_ ever passed her exam. It was considered the most demonic exam ever given, even more insidious than the one her fellow _jounin_, Hatake Kakashi, ever gave. This was a difficult examination, and the one who passed it was the only team who _didn't_ trigger the trap. She sighed and looked on as the devastating technique, _teki amimono no jutsu_, took hold on her prospective students.

It was a shame, and though she didn't have much hope for the meatball head kuniochi, the Hyuuga was supposed to be a genius in talent, and also had an exceptional intellect on top of it. The blonde wasn't nearly as dumb as he looked, as he obviously held back during his exams, if any of what she sensed was true, he was possibly the strongest of the group. She shook her head sadly as she knew the kid had what it took to be a great ninja.

She just hoped those two could come back next year to be great ninja. Hell, even she, Mitarashi Anko, the sole student of Orochimaru, failed the genin exam the first time. The meatball, well, if she came back, it would be a shame.

She did wonder, however, as she looked into the copse, was it possible, could it even be fathomable, even now, that they could pass? Was it... no... it was best not to think of it.

* * *

Tenten shook her head as he field clouded into darkness, as the copse became a dark and forbidding place. She didn't see Naruto or Neji anywhere. Her thoughts began to swirl on her two teammates. On the genius Hyuuga, which she termed "genius" lightly, she thought he was nothing but a sadistic prig, who cared for nothing but himself and his precious branch family, all else being damned. It does not matter at this point anymore. He always treated her coldly as if he was looking toward some unreachable goal, and treated her as an omnipresent obstacle instead of a help. He could just go to hell for all she cared. 

Naruto was still a bit of an enigma, though she did find out he was far more than he seemed. He also hid his talents outrageously during his exams and finally just seemed to be rather forthright and honest, well, as honest as a Shinobi could be expected to be. One of two adopted sons from her famed heroine kuniochi, Tsunade, one of the greatest ninja to ever come out of Konoha. He treated her like a person, not a rival, and not like a possession. She never let it on but she deeply appreciated that and had a bit of a warm feeling whenever the unassuming blonde ever came to her mind. At that point, the darkness lifted from her eyes and she finally found someone.

It wasn't someone she expected though. The shinobi in view was clad entirely in black from head to toe, as his head was turned away from the kuniochi. He wasn't very tall, but appeared to be looking around calmly. Tenten made a slight step on the treebranch she was on and the shinobi on the ground looked upward. Cold eyes met brown eyes and Tenten finally recognized the _hitai-ate _of the shinobi on the ground, that of the hated Cloud.

She growled and started to throw her weapons at him, starting with her katana, and moved on with kunai and shuriken. The cloud shinobi on the other hand surprised her with a surprising number of speedy defensive maneuvers that made her miss every throw. Tenten blinked in shock. _'This isn't possible, I just don't miss like that! I can't possibly miss such an easy target!'_

She growled but then took out scrolls from her pack and flew into midair, throwing them high and fast. "Soushouryu! Now let's see how you like this!" She raced toward her thrown weapons as the shinobi dodged again with surprising speed. The kuniochi then threw the weapons once more at the cloud ninja as he evaded each one, once again. A bright line of light caught his attention as it led from the katana, back to the outstretched hands of Tenten. Every weapon was attached by a string to her hands, and she pull both hands back for yet another attack. The weapons hit home, but there seemed to be a smile on the lips of the shinobi, as he vanished in a puff of smoke.

Tenten gasped. "A bunshin that can attack?"

Her reverie was interrupted as the cloud ninja once again attacked, but he attacked the ground from the trees, leaving a fierce kick to the ground, then leaping back up. The kick turned into a major tremor speeding toward Tenten in almost an instant. Tenten shrieked as her footing became unsteady, then she fell into a twelve foot pit. Worse yet, her head hit one of the rock sides. She lay unconscious on the base of the pit... as her world became as dark as the copse around her had been. Before she lost consciousness entirely, she saw another nin enter the fray.

* * *

Naruto sniffed and looked at this new nin that appeared. The kuniochi with the symbol of the grass ninja on her _hitai-ate, _was safely out of commission for the time being. He did find it strange that she used such a strange technique, as he never heard of grass nin ever being that skilled with weapons. He was lucky to have used a kage bunshin when he did otherwise he would have been fatally skewered. But now this shinobi with the rock symbol on his _hitai-ate_ glared at him with hatred in his eyes. 

Naruto was struggling to figure out the cryptic words that the fox gave him. But that would have to wait as he now fought against a surprising rock ninja who decided to use a strange form of taijutsu. As he blocked against the shots he took only a couple of slaps to his sides which didn't seem to hurt and counted with a horrifically powerful kick that the enemy shinobi blocked, yet was hurled back by the force.

The rock shinobi tumbled in midair, his wrists almost broken by the sheer force of the kick, and almost unusable. The rock nin's eyes glowed and the nerves near his eyes protruded against the tan skin hidden by a brown mask and uniform. Something in Naruto's mind clicked that something was very wrong. This looked all _too _familiar.

* * *

Neji grunted and panted heavily, as he felt that a few bones in his wrists were all but broken, and that this strange cloud ninja used could have killed him instantly if it connected. This was a surreal nightmare, as he saw a grass nin, in the crevice just nearby, out like a light. How could two enemy ninja, from different nations of all things, infiltrate Konoha? While he witnessed the fight between the grass and cloud ninja as he hid, he was stunned to see the grass ninja use a technique all too similar to that of Tenten, in fact, it almost looked like the _same _technique. He was further stunned when the cloud ninja used a _jounin_ level technique, the Kage Bunshin, and followed up with a kick that literally shook up the entire forest, and made the small crevice in the ground. 

He did smile lightly though, since the cloud shinobi probably used chakra to fuel his incredible strength. The gentle slaps of the jyuuken did more than it seemed. He had closed four of his tenketsu. The cloud shinobi would not be able to use such freakish strength again. At least, not for quite some time.

By that time, it would be over, and Neji would win. Though it still nagged on the Hyuuga's thoughts about the grass nin's maneuver. He didn't have time to think about it as the cloud nin closed in with a few strikes to his body, far faster than the Byakugan Genius would have expected as he leapt back, but suddenly when he tried to land, he crashed into a heap on the ground instead.

He tried to move his body, and found that he could, but not the way he wanted. His arm moved instead of his legs, his neck craned around instead of his arm moving. Did this guy know how to use tenketsu strikes as well? No, this was something a bit more basic, yet far more complex.

Then Neji widened his eyes in alarm... he had heard a little bit from his younger cousin, Hinata, about medic-nin techniques, and how nerves were connected throughout the body, and how electrical currents sent messages from the brain. If certain nerves were hit, it would alter or disrupt that flow.

It was at that point that Neji knew he was in dire straights as he faced off against not only a very powerful ninja, but probably a hideously strong and skilled _chuunin _or _jounin _of the Cloud, quite possibly one with medic-nin techniques on top of that. Something he was not prepared to face at this point in his life, and probably would not live to see the next day. Neji was ill-prepared for what the cloud ninja did next.

He merely sat on the ground, his eyes apparently showing deep reflection, not even giving a second thought to his disabled enemy. _'What the hell is this guy doing?'_

* * *

Naruto had finally disabled the struggling rock ninja with a nerve strike he learned under Tsunade's training. He knew he only had a couple minutes at best so he decided to try to think through the situation. He also noticed that he was right back at the sakura tree with the small boulder next to it, just about where this whole fiasco had begun. This battle seemed wrong from the start, as he began to feel the sting from the slaps before. Due to those slaps, he was unable to create the powerful shots he could at the beginning of the fight. 

It was as if some of his tenketsu were closed... and that's when it hit him. The techniques only his allies and few others could use, and the darkness finally lifting only to reveal something else. Believe nothing that you see and less of what you hear... it led to the trap being triggered before... the trap! This has to be part of the trap!

The question now is, are we fighting people, or shadows in our own minds? Either he fought phantom enemies with the skills of his friends or...

He stood up his eyes afright... he was fighting his friends who looked like enemies. That was it, that was the key to it there. The girl in the pit had to have been Tenten and she was...

_'Tenten! Kami, I hope she's alive!'_

He leapt into the pit and saw the still form of Tenten, with a crack to the side of her head, bleeding badly. He cursed silently then performed a healing jutsu which sealed the wound and allowed her to breathe a bit more easily. Naruto sighed in relief, she was going to be okay. The test be damned at this point if he fails or passes. While his mind told him that this was Tenten, his eyes told him that this was still a grass kuniochi.

Still, he now had to worry about Neji, and if he recovered by now. He leapt back out of the pit, only to meet a slap to the center of his chest.

* * *

Neji smirked as he rose to his feet, he just needed time to figure out which part of his body moved when he tried to move something else. He now had about 70-80% effectiveness in his body, even with the unusual 'rewiring' of his internal nerve endings. He leapt at the cloud ninja and continued to strike, as the ninja began to block all of his attacks. The cloud ninja and Neji were now on about equal footing, as both of them lost some effectiveness in their body, Neji due to the nerve strike, the cloud ninja due to six tenketsu being closed. 

However, the cloud ninja tried to tell him something, almost desperately it seemed. Neji frowned as all he heard was gibberish. Neji, not being impressed snarled and attacked further, his hands snaking in and sealing six more tenketsu, driving the cloud ninja to his knees. Neji grinned inwardly, but something still nagged at him.

_'I did it, I'm finally going to win against perhaps one of the strongest ninja I've ever seen, proving myself to the Hyuuga. But why didn't he defend himself against my attacks? Even as he was before, he should have easily blocked those shots, even come in with a counter shot. It was as if... he didn't want to fight. What was he trying to say? And what is he doing now?'_

What the cloud ninja did was write kanji into the earth. He was using his finger in a very unsteady hand, but what he did write stopped the young Hyuuga in his tracks. What was written was _"Friends are seen as enemies... illusion... it's me, Naruto."_

The cloud ninja seemed to smile slightly as he fell unconscious, then the grass Kuniochi leapt from the pit to stare at Neji. Neji merely shook his head then pointed at the message scrawled on the ground, then scrawled his name, _"Hyuuga Neji"_.

The grass ninja leapt back, not sure what to expect, then her hands went limp at her sides and she nodded. As she did, the illusion was dispelled, leaving the appearance of three injured, but living prospective genin, as Naruto slowly regained consciousness. Neji blinked, using his Byakugan on Naruto. The illusions were gone, and yet his strength still remained, limited by the closed tenketsu true, then the young Hyuuga's mind went into an state of overload.

_'Wait, he should have twelve closed tenketsu, not ten... now it's nine... seven... it can't be. His tenketsu are all reopened! And what's that swirl of red chakra within him, and... is it staring back at me? What the hell are you, Naruto? And why I am getting so scared looking at you this way? You! You're not human, you can't be human! '_

Naruto rubbed his head. "Remind me to clock Anko-sensei when we get out of here, eh, Tenten-san? Neji-san, let's get out of... Neji-san? Neji-san? What is it? Why are you..."

Neji scrambled back, his eyes still showing and activated Byakugan. The genius Hyuuga was terrified beyond belief, as his otherwise featureless eyes bugged out of his head. Only ten minutes remained in the exam, and the last trap was finally broken. However, Team Nine was at a total standstill. An impasse was to appear that would forever change the team. The following words from Neji would haunt Naruto for the rest of his life.

"Get away from me, you monster!"

* * *

A/N: There are two new jutsu that I have yet to explain, so allow me to explain: 

_Kasanami no Toukai (Inferno of Destruction):_ This technique, is a very powerful technique, almost as powerful as the rasengan or mizuken in raw power. It emits a powerful wave of chakra and fire. This is the only offensive jutsu known to the red-head, Umino Haruka.

_Teki Amimono no Jutsu (Enemy Web Technique): _An insidious technique as it is a combination of ninjutsu and genjutsu. It affects the mind in two stages, first it makes a darkened area around the place that this trap jutsu was triggered. When the darkened area lifts, the second stage takes effect where friends are seen as enemies, and enemies will be the only ones to see the victim as they are. Only when all affected by the illusion realize that it is an illusion will it be dispelled.

This was a short chapter, I admit, but I think it needed to end here for the important reason that it was logical to end it here. And now, Kyuubi answering reviews, and he'll answer reviews from both chapter seven and eight, though it will only be five reviewers that will be answered. Go to it, furball, and don't torment the cat.

**"Don't torment the cat? How about the cat not tormenting me?? How about caring for your poor, tired, abused little muse?! Any answer to that? Oh, fine.. at this point there are too many reviews to go over individually, as now they are coming in at the rate of over thirty-forty _per chapter._ Even a magnificent muse, such as myself cannot directly answer all of them, or pick five of the best ones. That would be a waste of my talents... so I'll go over the five points, criticisms and concerns, based on the reviews that Dark receives."**

Not a bad idea, furball. Let's get it moving!

**"The first thing we'll go over is the idea that Haku and Naruto are overpowered for the fic and should not be able to handle a Sannin or Jounin at their level. Even Sannin or Jounin can be surprised and underestimate someone, giving them an initial disadvantage. If they survive that, or if they know what either of the step-brothers can do, they are likely to be extremely prepared for what is to come. But yes, they are vastly more powerful and intelligent here than in the manga. And why not, they've had training from both Tsunade _and _Jiraya, several years worth, and they have more tricks coming on the way."**

Heh, heh. I'm evil like that, eh?

**"The only reason I stick around as your muse, Dark. Item number two is Anko as the Sensei for this year's team nine, Naruto, Tenten and Neji. Other than being an arrogant loudmouth herself, as well as the last student of Orochimaru, thus being introduced to a number of serpent-based jutsu and genjutsu, not a whole lot is known about her. Dark, being the mean bastard that he is, plans to take _full_ advantage of that, and he... ulp."**

_The sleeping Mr. Snuggles is introduced to the face of Kyuubi._

**"Ri-right. Item number three is Haku and Gai. They are not seen at all in this chapter, and according to dark, this was deliberate. They will be the main focus of chapter ten. As for Haku impressing Gai, that's a given... Gai is so crazed and focused that poor Haku is going to be in for the ride of his life, even if Gai is more competent than he appears."**

Maito Gai is actually very competent, but his enthusiasm makes him prone to mistakes.

**"Riiiight. The fourth item is that of little Haruko, that she may be a bit too powerful. Consider how powerful 'Inner Sakura' can be if she is ever unleashed... for that is the part of Sakura that is kept under wraps. But note, she is a little kid in many ways, and does have major weaknesses."**

That's absolutely right. I don't make invincible characters, unless they have bit parts to play, and she will not be a bit player.

**"The final item to be addressed for now is something else entirely, why is a trained ninja like Neji going to be so scared of Naruto? The only thing I'll let you in on is this, Neji at this time, while extremely gifted, is only a graduate of the academy, a genin, he doesn't yet have the year of experience he has attained in the series. Other than that, take a wild guess. :)"**

And that will wrap things up for right now. For the furball, this is Dark, asking everyone to review this little creation called Chapter Nine, signing off for now!


End file.
